Impulse
by Yassmina
Summary: Sasuke knew it from the start. From the moment his eyes laid on him. And yet...yet he did nothing about it, and now he was merely paying the price. AU. NaruSasu. Character death.
1. Une rencontre indésirable

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto.

 **Pairing:** Very light NaruSasu.

 **Rating:** M

 **A/N:** Okey, this story is honestly not for everyone. If you're here for some light fluffy read, then please pass your way. This is something heavier. It deals with mature themes, such as sexual harassment, mention of suicide. Please, if these are a trigger for you, then DON'T READ THIS. You've been warned.

Phew, now that we got this out of the way, let's carry on.

I currently don't have a beta, so I deeply apologize for my stupid mistakes.

I hope you enjoy the read!

* * *

 **Impulse**

* * *

I. Une rencontre indésirable

* * *

 _Go ahead and cry little boy_

 _You know that your daddy did too_

 _You know what your mama went through_  
 _You gotta let it out soon, just let it out_

 _ **The Neighbourhood~Daddy issues.**_

* * *

Sasuke sleepily opened his eyes to the cheerful, pleasant chirping of the birds outside his window, curtains letting through a ray of sunlight as it assaulted his face, making him shield his eyes with his arm from the stinging light.

He groaned loudly, then stretched his stiff muscles while lying on his bed, extending his arms over his head. He sat up, head spinning, trying to adjust to his surroundings.

He looked mindlessly to the ceiling, then back to the window, eyes looking about the birds singing and tweeting brightly up in the sky.

His eyes slowly widened in horror.

He gazed at the damned traitorous clock on his nightstand.

He was late.

He was too damn late.

With a start, he hastily jumped from his bed, hurrying to the bathroom, then back to his closet, then back again to the bathroom, all the while swearing and cursing under his breath.

"Fuck you, you fucking piece of junk. Fuck me. Fuck this shit. God I'm screwed."

He hurriedly buckled his belt, zipped up his pants and pulled on his blazer, then spat out his toothbrush in the bathroom sink. An image of Naruto and Sakura waiting for him to catch up with their classes quickly crossed his vision, before vanishing as fast as it came.

"They could fucking wait."

He glared daggers at his alarm clock.

The damned old garbage piece of shit pulled the same stunt again.

God he was furious.

With no remorse visible on his face, he strode in its way. In one, two steps he was in front of it. In a flash, he swung his leg, sending the innocent looking object flying across the room, landing heavily against the floor with a widely satisfying crash.

There.

Now he felt better. Much much better.

He sighed, inwardly seething. He willed his face to soften up and the crease between his brows to disappear. He threw a quick look at his watch.

Ten more minutes to go before school start closing the gates.

He could still make it.

In a quick motion, he grabbed his backpack and cell phone, and run with no second thoughts downstairs.

He made sure he made as little noise as possible, not wanting to disturb his mother's sleep. His efforts were deemed useless after all, since he heard a soft tender voice calling for him from the kitchen.

"Sasuke, is that you?"

Mikoto Uchiha ran out of the kitchen to meet her disheveled son by the stairway. She had a confused look with a hint of concern, eying her son like a hawk.

"Honey, is something wrong? Why aren't you at school?"

The young Uchiha bit his lip in shame. Uchiha's never showed late, as his father used to say prior to his death.

He could vividly imagine a disappointed Fugaku shaking his head in disapproval.

"N-no, don't worry mom. Really it's nothing. I just didn't pay attention to time, that's it." Sasuke succeeded in mustering a quick smile, in a way to reassure her that indeed nothing was wrong.

He knew how Mikoto adored that piece of junk that always fucked with his timing. He wondered how his mother will react if she saw its pitiful state. Probably not in a good way.

Mikoto seemed to believe him, so she said in a hurried tone:

"Then go, go!"

She shooed him out like a stray cat, and before she could close the door, she called after him, "Sasuke, there's someone I would love you to meet this evening. Would you come home earlier for me?"

The teenager, who was already calculating the minutes it will take him to reach his friends, mindlessly nodded his head, and prepared himself to start jogging, when another call stopped him in his tracks.

"Here!" Mikoto threw something to her son. Said son caught it and scanned it briefly.

He grinned. It was a toast.

"Thanks Mom!" then he broke into a sprint, a toast hanging from his mouth swaying up and down in sync with his movements, his school bag bumping into his back.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"Asshole, you're late!"

A pissed looking Uzumaki sneered at the approaching Uchiha, a frown plastered across his handsome features, with strong bulging arms folded to his chest.

Sasuke would've been intimidated by the imposing frame of the Uzumaki if it weren't for the fact that they were now friends for years.

"Sasuke, you're late."

And then right beside the Uzumaki, stood a not so very pleased Haruno.

Glaring daggers at the brunet.

Sasuke felt shivers running down his spine. He gulped.

Sasuke was always (and will always be) intimidated by the petite looking Haruno. He knew how aggresive she could get and how strongly her punch could hurt. Years of friendship never managed to conceal that threatening aura she always managed to pull whenever something hit on her nerves.

Now was one of those times.

"I'm sho sho Shorry guysh…"

He bent over his knees, panting and gasping, then took a full minute to restore his breath, not even bothering with the remains of the toast still stuck in his mouth. He took another minute to gulp the food down, then finally, which felt like eternity, straightened up and looked them in the eyes."

"I'm sorry, the shit didn't work again this morning. Had to get prepared in less than ten minutes. And Mom happened to be awake too, soo yeah…" he offered a small apologetic smile, while waiting for his two best friends 's reactions.

He smiled even more when Naruto sighed and dropped his arms, while Sakura merely kept looking at him, before exhaling in desperation and finally smiling back in his face.

But then Sasuke's smile abruptly dropped, when he saw them looking mischievously at each other.

 _Fuck_.

"Well, Sasuke," Sakura started "We're the best of friends of course we forgive you."

Then, with a subtle wink to Naruto, she yelled, "The last to reach school owes the winners a free meal!"

And then she was gone, Uzumaki hot on her heels, both running and running, not giving a damn about the dubious looks of the students thrown in their way.

Leaving a distorted, out of breath Uchiha behind.

"Fuckers."

Sasuke cursed his lucky star, his two idiotic friends, and the damned fate. He was cursed, he decided.

Itachi and his father were probably laughing their asses off somewhere there in the afterlife.

As he finally regained his composure, and straightened up, he felt a delicate but strong arm slide around his shoulders. He stiffened, but quickly relaxed when the same familiar comforting smell of his friend hit his nostrils.

"Well, good morning Uchiha." Hyuga Neji hugged Sasuke briefly before letting go.

"Morning," said Neji's boyfriend, Gaara. His smile showing a straight line of white perfect teeth. His eyeliner looking as hardcore as ever.

Sasuke nodded to the both of them, with an equal genuine smile.

"Morning guys."

"Want to march with us to school?" offered Neji politely.

"Sure."

Neji and Gaara were probably the most popular gay couple of their school. Shocking all of their schoolmates when they made their relationship official. No one saw that coming. Not even Sasuke who was a good friend to the both of them.

As far as Sasuke was concerned, Neji never showed any interest in girls. Neither in guys at that matter. So when the stubborn proud Neji, hooked up with the reserved calm Gaara, he could only shake his head in disbelief with the rest of his friends.

So damn unexpected, but a pleasant suprise nonetheless.

"Where are Naruto and Sakura? Don't tell me…"

"Same old, same."

Neji couldn't help but chuckle at Sasuke's helpless situation. Those two probably have _'Food before Friends'_ policy.

By now, students were hurrying off before school start closing its gates. The couple though looked as unconcerned as ever.

"Sasuke, will you come to my party Friday after school? It's gonna be fun."

The brunet grinned. He knew how crazy Neji's parties could get (and how dangerous too), so he nodded "Definitely. Haven't got anything better to do anyway."

Luckily, they made it almost in time. They parted ways at the school hall, each to his classes.

When he finally got to his destination, he found Sakura already seated in her place, smirking and snickering to herself.

"You guys are the fucking worst." he frowned in annoyance, and slumped uncaringly into the seat located in front of Sakura's. He couldn't believe they used the same silly game on him. Again.

Meanwhile, Sakura seemed unfazed by the brunet's terrible mood. If anything, she seemed delighted and content with herself.

"What? You lost. Suck it up like a man, Sasuke. You're the loser, and now you owe the winners a meal." she winked playfully at him.

Sasuke sent her a dirty look over his shoulder, intent on saying something. He eventually let it slide away, when their teacher finally entered the classroom, killing off any potential conversation between the two.

He sighed. "I swear, sometimes I feel like I befriended demons in shape of humans."

Sakura chuckled softly, putting her palm on his shoulder blades. She gradually lifted it up and up, cramping her hand around the nape of his neck in a snakish like hold. Sasuke couldn't help the shivers of uneasiness running through his body.

She whispered. "Who knowssss..."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Standing in the school hall next to Naruto's classroom, both Sasuke and Sakura were waiting for the Uzumaki while chatting and laughing with some of his classmates.

Since he was two years their senior, they couldn't see each other as often as they liked to. Lunch period being the only time they could meet in school. Sasuke still pained him the fact that this was Naruto's very last year of high school, and the graduation ceremony was approaching as a speeding rabbid.

In a few months time, Naruto will graduate and head over to the university, while he and Sakura will move on to their junior year.

He willed his head to get rid of those unpleasant thoughts.

He just hoped their friendship will last for a very very long time. That their friendship wouldn't become a thing of the past. As cliché as it sounds, he couldn't imagine his life without his two dear friends.

"Then guys, see you later." Kiba waved in goodbye, as he and his bunch of friends walked through the hall toward the exit, stealing admiring glances from both guys and girls.

The football team, rather _The popular jock_ , as Sasuke so liked to call them.

From where they stood, they could see Hinata, Kiba's girlfriend, jumping into her boyfriend's arms, making some jealous girls throw dirty imperceptible venom glances at her. Hinata was probably the most envied and hated girl in school because of her relationship with Kiba for two years now. Nobody thought that the shy clumsy Hinata could win Kiba's attention, the captain of the football team, much less end up together with him. The hate was so intense it sometimes developed to bullying.

More often than not, Sasuke would secretly wonder if that was worth the trouble. If liking someone and getting hate for it was worth doing it in the first place.

A faint nudge to his side pulled Sasuke out of his thoughts. He looked down at Sakura.

"Sasuke, I think I want a boyfriend too." she had a dreamy look to her face, probably fantasizing over some too-perfect-for-this-world boyfriend.

Sasuke sighed, then muttered "Make it three."

With a sweep to her hair, Sakura looked incredulously at him. "You're one to talk? You could literally get any girl or guy you want. I'm sure even the straightest dude will turn gay for you."

Sasuke rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Well, exactly. They all want to get into my pants. Not my…heart. I want a real relationship. Something strong that will last for months, years even. I don't want a person attracted to my ass only."

"Well that someone may very well be under your nose, and you're blind to see it." Sakura muttered under her breath, talking more to herself than to the brunet.

Sasuke looked confused, he didn't catch up on what the Haruno said. "Huh?"

She smiled at him. "Nothing. I still can't believe you're still a virgin, Sasuke."

He snorted. "You're hardly one to talk, you know that?"

She smirked while lifting a pinkish eyebrow. "Are you sure?"

The brunet widened his eyes, shocked. "Wait, what?"

Before their conversation could carry on to reach undesirable lengths, an angry looking Uzumaki finally stormed out of the classroom, and joined their side. He looked annoyed as hell. "Fucking old hag." he mumbled.

Since he joined the football team, precisely a year ago, he grew taller and more muscular, reaching the six feet. It was probably the reason why Naruto's popularity increased ten fold in less than a year. Even Sasuke would sometimes admire his friend's body built, wishing and hoping that the same changes will occur to his own body too. Sasuke may not be interested in the Uzumaki romantically (yet), but he knew a guy was hot when he saw one, and he wasn't about to deny that to Naruto with his savagely handsome features.

As soon as the latter reached them, he dropped his frown and grinned wholeheartedly, before sliding his strong muscled arms over their shoulders and squeezed.

"I'm so sorry I'm late. Guys, my math teacher gave me such a terrible earful, I almost lost my hearing."

"Hn, served you right."

"Now, who is salty here." Naruto released Sakura, only to tighten his grip around Sasuke's neck, putting him a choke-hold. He ignored the youngest's moans of pain, and pulled him down to ruffle frantically his hair. He laughed loudly when a _"Fucking let go asshole, you're suffocating me!"_ was weakly mumbled from under his arm. With a final go to Sasuke's hair he pulled back, and admired his work.

"There! Perfect."

He managed to keep a straight face for one tiny second, before bursting out laughing. His laughter couldn't die down, not even when his sides kept hurting him from muscle strain. Few droplets of tears slipped down his whiskered cheeks. "I-I'm… Bahahaa! I'm sorry Sasuke, but you look like une poule mouillée. Literally!"

Sasuke by now was so red from embarrassment and indignation, he could be mistaken for a tomato. Even Sakura was silently laughing to herself. Naruto's laughter abruptly died down, when a kick was sent to his balls. In a second, he slumped to his knees, howling like a wounded animal while nursing his poor nuts.

"Ouuuuch, my babies! You little…" and then up was he again, throwing his whole body on the Uchiha before tackling him down to the ground, tickling him ruthlessly.

"No, no Naruto, stop! I can't b-breath, bahahaa…"

Sakura by now lost her humor. Her guts were twisting in hunger, and these assholes were wasting her time. Her delicate eyebrows met to form a deep frown.

"Guys, guys!" The boys didn't answer her, immersed in their game.

" **GUUUUUYS!** " this seemed to get their attention though, so she continued "Either you stop shitting around and start walking, or I swear I'll keep kicking your asses until we reach the dining hall."

They both gulped simultaneously. Sakura looked dead serious. They didn't doubt her words. Hunger can do wonderful things to people.

After some bickering and more yelling, they headed out , snickering and laughing out loud.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke was suffering. His wallet even more so.

School was finally over for today, and he was sitting in a small restaurant that served fast food, watching, his head resting on his palm, exasperated, as his friends were eating to their heart's content. "Guys, you're the fucking worst, I hate you."

He was answered with a cheeky grin and a soft chuckle from Naruto and Sakura respectively. The Uzumaki has now ordered food for the sixth time, while the Haruno was still stuck eating her second meal, looking almost full. He knew from his experiences with these situations that she wouldn't be able to get past her second one. Naruto, though. He wasn't too sure.

"By the way, why are you even here Naruto? Don't you have a team meeting or something alike?"

"Well fortunately for me, and not for you, Gai happened to be absent for today, so we were dismissed." Naruto grinned, triumphant, making the brunet narrow his eyes. The latter's hand itched to punch the other's face and wipe the smug grin off.

Sakura sat opposite him and right beside Naruto. She looked at him in a way that could almost be called pity. Almost.

After she finished eating, which was, just like Sasuke predicted, after the second portion, she wiped her hands on a napkin. She grabbed her school bag, pulled something out and gave it to Sasuke. The latter curiously peeked at it. It was a cute looking bluish digital alarm clock.

"Was meaning to offer it for a while. It was about time you replace that piece of junk of yours. You can thank me later." she winked at him.

Sasuke smiled broadly. It was such a small simple gesture, but one that warmed his heart nonetheless. Sakura could be a life saver at times. And apparently a money saver too. "Thanks."

As he gave another appreciative look to his new alarm clock, he suddenly remembered what his mother told him this morning.

 _"Sasuke, there's someone I would love you to meet this evening. Would you come home earlier for me?"_

 ** _Shit._**

Abruptly, he stood from his seat, grabbed his bag and blazer, and threw more money than necessary on the table. "I'm sorry guys, but I really have to go." he said urgently.

Both Naruto and Sakura looked alarmed. "What? Sasuke, what's wrong?"

"Nothing to worry about, there's someone mother wants me to meet this evening," he quickly checked his watch. "And now I'm fucking late again. See ya tomorrow!" he turned around and started running toward the exit.

"Sasuke, don't forget to call us!" Naruto yelled after him.

"Don't worry, I will!" he yelled back.

And then he was gone.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke couldn't believe his eyes. Couldn't believe his ears.

Couldn't believe what was happening at this very moment.

He expected to meet a relative or a close friend of his mother, or someone alike.

But not, this person in _particular._

"Sasuke, I would love you to meet-" _no…_ "-my fiancé-" _no no no…_ "-and soon to be my husband." _The fuck No!_

 _Bloody hell._

Sasuke winced. He couldn't help it really.

It's not like he minded his mother having a boyfriend or even a new husband. He always hoped she would be able to forget the past and carry on with her life.

His father's and brother's death came in the most unexpected ways. No one saw it coming.

His mother was so broken and so deep in her misery, he had been forced to be put into someone else's care.

Nobody could blame her, really. Life didn't show her any mercy when she took away from her a husband, and a _son_. Both at the same time.

Fortunately, after a brief period of time, Mikoto finally managed to pull herself together. And he had been returned under her care again.

He could still remember the day she finally got to meet him after months of being separate, she kept crying and sobbing while holding him tightly against her chest, saying how terrible of a mother she was, how she'll never make the same mistake again, how everything that happened to their lives was wrong and from now on she'll try to do things right.

By then, he was merely a seven years old brat, not understanding much, but knowing that something terrible had hit their family hard, and shock them all to the core. That things wouldn't be the same again.

That his father won't cross the house's threshold again. That Itachi won't play games with him again, or take him on walks, or buy him toys, or…

Sasuke gulped and obliged himself to smile and to look at the man standing tall in front of him. He seemed to be in his early forties or so.

They shook hands. He barely held himself from wincing again.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Sasuke," it took all of his willpower to keep his smile intact and prevent it from turning into a sneer.

"I've heard a lot about you from your Mom, Sasuke." the man winked in Mikoto's way. Sasuke felt like he was about to throw up, in fact he almost emptied his stomach right then right there when his mother returned the same gesture. "I've been wanting to meet you for a while now, son."

 _Son…_

 _Fuck! I'm not your fucking son you fu-_

All of his senses seemed to shut down, when he felt strong arms circling his body, the man pulling him firmly against his hard chest in what was apparently a hug. The teenager couldn't bring himself to relax in the man's hold. It felt fake, everything about this person felt so damn fake, the urge to gag and spit his guts out was so intense it nearly suffocated him.

Shifting his eyes to Mikoto's face, the woman's smile was so wide and genuine it reached her eyes. She smiled the way she hadn't done for years.

The teenager couldn't help the lump forming in his throat. He didn't know why, but he felt like crying.

He honestly couldn't see what was so appealing about this dude in his mother's eyes. Not even his good looks could conceal the aura of discomfort and mystery surrounding him.

Simply put, this man was giving him the creeps like no other.

His smile was so damn hollow and sinister, it made you want to gouge your eyes out. A feeling Sasuke got only from looking at criminals. Rapists in particular. The look in his eyes promised trouble, hardship, sorrow, pain, pain, pai-

 _Oh my fucking Gosh, why am I being so damn dramatic?_

Seeing that his mother was watching his reaction very closely, he fisted his hands by his sides, before slowly raising them up to hug the man back using more force than necessary.

 _I'm doing this for Mom._

The fact that her smile widened even more, put him in an even sadder state.

 _Yes, for Mom only._ He reminded himself again.

Finally, after what felt like eternity to Sasuke, but were actually few seconds, the man let go of the brunet, and instead slid his arm around his shoulders. "I'm so glad I finally got to meet you, son."

 _For Mom._

"Oh, I'm very honored Mr-"

"It's Shinjo Kaname. But just call me Kaname."

"Kaname, right."

"And one more thing Sasuke," Mikoto was saying, while hooking Kaname's free arm around her own shoulders. "From now on we'll be all living under the same roof." she said brightly, almost chanting it.

Sasuke nearly choked on his spit.

 _"_ And we'll be one big happy family!" then Mikoto started laughing, Kaname joining her bit of laughter.

"Oh, That's really great, hahaa. I-I don't doubt that." he laughed awkwardly, feigning a delighted attitude.

His guts could forsee a chain of terrible events happening in the near future.

One thing Sasuke was sure of-

 _His guts never lied._

* * *

 ** _TBC_**


	2. Une présence insupportable

**A/N:** Thank you so much for those who took the time and read this story! Your words encouraged me enough to write this chapter in a few days and now it's update time :D

Okay, not gonna lie. All of the characters here are OCC and I deeply apologize for that. I just couldn't imagine them differently.

Anyway, I'm kind of not too sure about this chapter, but oh well, it doesn't matter now.

Hope this one is still worth the while!

* * *

II. Une présence insupportable

* * *

 _I see nothing in your eyes,_  
 _And the more I see the less I like._  
 _Is it over yet, in my head?_  
 _I know nothing of your kind,_  
 _And I won't reveal your evil mind._  
 _Is it over yet? I can't win_

 _ **Breaking Benjamin~Breath**_

* * *

Sleep never showed up on Sasuke's doorstep.

He spent the whole night deeply immersed in his endless swirls of thoughts, going through circles in his head over the same point again and again and again.

He still couldn't believe that he just met his mother's fiancé. That things were indeed about to change. But he wasn't sure if they will be for the better or the worse.

He couldn't really point out what it was about Kaname that seemed too fishy to him. As silly as it sounds, Sasuke sincerely hoped he could internally talk with his guts to address the problem. He was sure their help would be very much needed. At least he would know what was so ominous and sinister about that man. And he would work on the solutions instead.

He jumped when his phone buzzed loudly through the once silent room. With a sigh, he rolled over his stomach and grabbed the phone from his nightstand, hands still shaky from the scare jump of earlier.

He frowned. It was Naruto.

 _'S'uke ur asleep?'_

Sasuke's brow twitched. Apparently his theory that his friends were actually demons roaming the earth as humans wasn't that highly unlikely. And the fuck was up with that English though.

He texted back _'Well, I WAS, you dipshit.'_ he wasn't sure why he lied, but he knew for sure that if he told him the truth, that he couldn't sleep at all, Naruto wouldn't let him be without knowing the reason behind his insomnia. He wasn't sure he wanted to share that bit of information just yet.

He was startled again when he received Naruto's next message. _'with how fast u just texted me i doubt u were asleep in the first place'_

 _Damn him that Naruto,_ Sasuke thought to himself. The brunet even scanned briefly his room, wondering if Naruto was indeed somewhere in the vicinity.

' _Anyway, you wanted something?'_

' _yeah, I wanted to ask u 'bout that person u were s'pposed to meet today,so who was it and how did'it go'_

Sasuke suddenly got nervous. The train of thoughts he'd had earlier drained him to the point of exhaustion, and he wanted nothing more than to blurt all his worries out and to actually speak things up with Naruto. But on the other hand, he still believed that he was merely being a drama queen, that this situation was getting more attention than it deserved, so instead, he sealed his mouth shut, and answered Naruto with, _'Tell you tomorrow asshole, goodnight.'_ And with that, he shut off his phone at once, and threw it unceremoniously on the ground.

In his semi dark room, dimly illuminated by the moonlight, he grabbed his bed sheets, pulled them over his face, and twisted his body repeatedly to get the most comfortable position. A leg bent up to his chest, and the other stretched down. An arm placed under his pillow to give some leverage to his head, while the other arm was sent carelessly to the bed side. He sighed in contentment and closed his eyes. He couldn't stop that stupid feeling of guilt that was gnawing at his mind.

Some time later, the unexpected beeping of the alarm clock woke Sasuke with a start, and caused him to fall off the bed.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke had a terrible night. He doubted his day would be any better.

"Oh my God, Sasuke. What's wrong with your face!? You look like hell."

His friends were _not_ helping his case in the least bit.

"No need to state the obvious, Sakura." he snapped at the Haruno, as she and Naruto stood side by side, looking intently at him, scrutinizing his face. They acted as if he just popped up a second head.

Naruto himself had been determined to throw a tantrum on Sasuke for leaving him hanging yesterday, but all thoughts of that vanished. "I used to believe that Hell did not exist. Now I'm not too sure." the look that the brunet shot the Uzumaki was so heated it could melt ice.

Sasuke didn't waste his breath on the Uzumaki. Instead, he pushed his way through them, purposefully hitting Naruto's side hard, and continued walking to school. The last place he ever wanted to be.

He knew he looked like _hell_ , as his friends so loved to put it. He knew his face was pale, rather _paler_ than usual, and he was way too conscious of his bloodshot eyes. But he couldn't help it. It wasn't his fault the damned sleep did not come the previous night, and definitely _not_ his fault that his mother chose an unpleasant suspicious looking dude as her fiancé. Luckily, he managed to sneak out of the house before any of them woke up, especially his mother. The last thing he wanted was having her attention directed to his face. She wouldn't be pleased and he didn't have it in him to impress her with a new lie.

A hand that was put on his shoulder pulled Sasuke out of his trance.

"Come on S'ukeee, don't be an ass. We're just worried about you, that's all." Sasuke glanced at the hand on his shoulder, before gradually lifting his eyes, to meet the azure bright orbs of his friend. Naruto sounded so sincere in his words, that was only enhanced by the innocent look Sakura was giving him, nodding her head and putting a small sincere smile on her lips.

He sighed, but his own smile didn't look any less genuine. It was in times like this that he was reminded why their friendship managed to survive all those years.

He inhaled deeply. "Yesterday, I met my Mom's fiancé." he stated nonchalantly.

Sasuke had to bite his cheek hard to stop the laughter from escaping his mouth. Naruto and Sakura's reactions were priceless. Their jaws were hanging wide open like a gaping fish.

He quickly regained his composure, cleared his throat and said, "Well, had the cat gotten your tongues?" he smirked. For a second, he was so tempted to grab his phone and snap a picture of the hilarious view in front of him. He was sure they would all laugh their asses off when the phase of shock would pass over them. But then, Sakura moved the first, took a moment to turn her face placid, and glanced back at him.

She put a hand on his shoulder, face looking so serious the brunet had shivers at the intensity in her eyes. "And what are _your_ thoughts about that? Are you um… against it?"

 _Huh?_

Sasuke noticed how Sakura was so very careful with her words. He blinked twice, then shook his head frantically. "No, of course not. I don't mind her having another lover. I could never stand in the way of her happiness, if said happiness has to be with another person."

Sasuke was even more surprised when he saw his two friends sighing loudly, looking relieved. "What, did you think I would act like an asshole and stop this wedding from happening?"

He widened his eyes when both Naruto and Sakura nodded their heads.

"Gah, Fuck you both!"

He turned away from them, and strolled down the street, frowning and fuming, annoyed.

He heard them snickering and chuckling behind him, before they abruptly jumped on him.

"Now now Sasuke, we're just teasing you." said Naruto, his smile stretching to his ears.

"Yeah, right."

"If you aren't against that, what is the problem then?" said Sakura as she leaned closer to him.

The Uchiha didn't answer right away, seeming lost in his thoughts. For a moment, they thought he would say nothing more, then came the mumbled reply. "I don't like the guy she chose. I get unpleasant vibes from him. I don't trust him."

Naruto and Sakura shared a confused look. They didn't know how to answer to that.

Eventually, as the silence stretched for too long, Naruto merely said, "Give the guy a chance, he may surprise you."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

At last, the boisterous bell rang loudly, declaring the school day has reached its end.

It was Friday, and Sasuke and the rest of his friends were invited to Neji's party for the evening. Naruto and Sasuke were slowly making their way out of the school gates, waiting for Sakura to arrive.

The Uzumaki was sucking on a lollipop, rolling it over and over in his mouth, rattling it at times with his teeth. And at times, making even sucking noises. Sasuke was growing incredibly irritated with Naruto, but most importantly, he felt uncomfortable and… _weird_. He pocketed his hands and fisted them, his eyes deeply narrowed. For a time, he contemplated the idea of reaching over and shoving the lollipop down Naruto's throat, just so the Uzumaki would stop the unsettling noises.

At last he snapped. "Oh for fuck's sake, cut it out now, will you!? What are you, five?" Sasuke could feel himself blushing. God, those sounds Naruto was emitting made him feel…funny in the pit of his stomach. Before he knew it, and without his consent, his eyes traveled to the innocent lollipop Naruto was thrusting slowly into his mouth, watching as the candy was slowly disappearing, then appearing in the next minute covered with the Uzumaki's saliva.

Sasuke gulped. The asshole was doing it on purpose. He could tell from the amused look Naruto was giving him.

"What? If you wanted one you could've just asked for it, no need to be rude."

Sasuke had a crisped look on his face. Before he could think of a clever comeback that would shut the blond's mouth for good, he was distracted by a commotion in the distance across the street. He would've shrugged his shoulder and returned to his conversation with Naruto, when a unique color exclusive to a particular person shone in the distance.

He narrowed his eyes. There was Sakura in the middle of the commotion-

…beating the shit out of a certain guy.

Sasuke widened his eyes in horror. Even from this far, the dude looked pretty badly beaten.

"Holy shit!"

Naruto, sensing the sudden discomfort of his friend, finally let his eyes travel to what had held Sasuke's attention.

"Jesus fucking Christ!" he muttered, the lollipop long forgotten, slowly sliding out of his mouth to meet the ground in a disconcerting crash.

In a moment, they briefly looked at each other in disbelief. The next, they were both running, in hope to come to Sakura's aid.

Rather, the guy's aid in this case.

This was bad. Surely, Sakura did get into fights before. But she never looked this… outraged and enraged.

As they finally reached the scene, they witnessed the Haruno delivering another punch to the already bashed face of the guy.

No one was helping the poor guy. All of their schoolmates were watching a girl beating the crap out of a guy, not bothering to interfere and prevent things from worsening.

Probably because a _girl_ beating a _guy_ was a sight so very rare to behold. Still, that didn't make things any less dangerous.

Sakura's punch was as strong as Naruto's and Sasuke's ones combined. They both learned it the hard way.

Sasuke winced when the poor dude was the receiving end of another deadly punch. This situation was getting out of control.

Shoving their way through the dense crowd, Sasuke wrenched Sakura upright, hauling her away from her prey, while Naruto crouched beside the victim.

"Let me go Sasuke! LET ME FUCKING GO!"

"Calm down dammit!"

Sasuke seized the enraged Haruno by the arms, tightening his grip like steel. She kept trashing in his hold, bobbing her head up and down. Sasuke groaned when Sakura's head hit him in the jaw so hard he felt his teeth grind under the pressure.

Suddenly he felt enraged himself.

"Sakura, knock it off!" looking around him, Sasuke tightened his grip even more so, and propelled her some feet away.

With no mildness whatsoever in his treatments, he turned Sakura around, grabbed her by the collar and slammed her hard against the wall.

She huffed in pain, but Sasuke could care less about that.

"Sakura, listen to me!"

"Let go of me!"

"I said Listen!"

Sakura looked ready to bite the Uchiha's head off. "What you guys have anything to say in this? You'll stand by his side anyways just because he has a cock! Just let me get my frustration out on him while I still have a chance."

"The fuck, that dude's face is hardly recognizable. He could lodge a complaint against for what you have don-"

She cut him off. "I don't give a flying fuck about that. The asshole sexually harassed me and threatened to rape me. HOW FUCKING DARE HE!"

Understanding slowly down on him. Sasuke felt as if he'd been slapped across the face. He felt horrible. "I'm sorry, I-I didn't know…" he mumbled weakly, watching as hatred darkened the emerald eyes of his friend.

His hold on Sakura nearly slackened.

The Haruno scoffed and said. "Don't act all clueless and shit on me. Someone needs to put an end to this fucking madness. I could keep bashing his face all day long and never tire of it!"

Sasuke could see unshed tears filling the Haruno's eyes. She panted and scowled at him, as if she's watching an enemy and not a friend.

And then suddenly, she broke out crying, apparently the strain on her heart too great for her to handle. She sobbed and cried like a little girl, looking down and refusing to meet Sasuke's eyes.

The Uchiha released his grip on her. Feeling his heart crisp in his chest, he gently placed a hand on the nape of her neck, and guided her head to his chest, before he closed his arms over her shoulders in an embrace.

Meanwhile, Sakura succumbed to her tears, and clutched Sasuke's shirt while trying to stifle her cries.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"Here."

Sakura while sitting on a bench, lifted her head and glanced up, watching as Naruto offered her a bottle of water. She blinked twice, then smiled and took it while thanking him.

They were all now in the central park. After the crowd dispersed, Sasuke was surprised when Naruto, clueless at that time, told him that the guy ran away when the chance presented itself, not even letting him get someone who would tend to his wounds.

They were all shocked though when some girls from their school came to Sakura and thanked her greatly, saying that the guy deserved all the beating he got since he was harassing them for a while now. Apparently no matter of how many times they asked for help, no one seemed willing to answer their call.

Sakura, after her short bit of crying, was so delighted and smiled brightly at the girls, and told them how she's more than willing to beat the asshole all over again if he ever as much as reach their sides.

They doubted he'll show himself ever again though.

Sakura had still red looking spots around her eyes from crying. When Sasuke explained the whole situation to Naruto, the latter got so mad, he looked about ready to kill someone in his fury.

Even now, the Uzumaki could still feel his blood boiling with anger.

Shifting his eyes to the pacing Uchiha some feet away, he watched as the latter was talking to his mother on his phone. Naruto could see that he was gradually growing irritated with something from the way he clenched his jaw and how his knuckles turned white from the force of his grip on the phone.

"…but Mom, I promised my friend I won't miss his party. Can't we just leave it for another day?" he heard him saying.

Unsurpringly, the Uzumaki's eyes darkened into something that could almost be called, longing. Desire maybe. His hungry eyes rocketed over his object of admiration, drinking in the sight of his friend while he still had a chance. He never wished anything to himself this much in his whole life. Being around Sasuke all those years had always been physically painful to him. He was attracted to him like a heart beat.

He always feared that breaching the next step would be the end of their friendship. His friends were too important to him, he never ever dared to do something that could threaten its existence.

So he settled on secretly watching. Watching and doing nothing about it. Until the right time comes. He just hoped it would eventually come, and preferably very soon at that.

Naruto was so absorbed in his thoughts, he failed to notice the look Sakura was giving him. A knowing kind of look. She cleared her throat noisily, snapping Naruto out of his daze when Sasuke finally ended the call and strode in their way.

He wrinkled his brows and sighed. "I'm sorry, guys I think I'll just pass this time."

"What?" Naruto and Sakura exclaimed at the same time in shock.

"But-but Sasuke!" Sakura started. "It's Friday, and above all it's Neji's party. You know better than anyone how Neji throws the best ones in school."

The Uchiha approached them some more. "I'm well aware of that. But an expected plan was just thrown at me. Apparently Kaname, I mean my Mom's fiancé, wants us to hang out together, to form some 'bond' or some shit like that."

Naruto actually snickered at Sasuke's words. "You're not serious, now are you?"

Sasuke didn't look amused. "Well Uzumaki, yes I _am_ serious. And as it turns out, he'll be here in five minutes, or so… Well, speaking of the devil."

They all watched as a SUV pulled over. The driver, a well-dressed man, rolled down the window and removed his sunglasses.

He took a full minute to study the teenagers, then smiled. "Hello there."

No one noticed how his lips curled up in distaste when his eyes lingered a little while longer than necessary on the Uzumaki.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

He couldn't stop fidgeting.

His palms were sweaty, and his heart fluttered in his chest. He was nervous.

Looking up at the man sitting in front of him, he managed to pull a fake smile and barely concealed all traces of nervousness.

Even though they were occupying a place in a crowded pizzeria, where people were chatting and laughing around them, Sasuke couldn't for the love of him will himself to relax and act all normal and casual in the presence of this person.

He still knew nothing whatsoever about him. His mother never mentioned anything personal about him. No backstory, no past, no current situation in life. No nothing.

Probably why he was brought here in the first place.

Glancing discreetly at his watch, he noted that ten minutes had already passed and no one had said a word yet. He could now be making the best of his time with his friends elsewhere. But no, his mother just had to act all evil on him and get him involved in this distressing situation that he wished on no one.

As he directed his eyes back to Kaname, he gulped at the disconcerting look the man was giving him. It was so intense, so heightened it weighted down on him and made him think he would snap in half.

At last, Kaname's mouth curled up in a smile. Sasuke got this feeling that the asshole was making him umconfortable on purpose.

"I'm sorry that this came all of a sudden, but you have to know that I'm so happy we're having this moment together, Sasuke." Kaname gave him another sinister look of his. The man passed a swift hand through his dirty blonde hair. Sasuke noticed how thin and frail it was. He'll probably go bald in few years time.

"I'm so happy we're having this moment too, Kaname. But, um- why did we come here?"

Kaname quirked an eyebrow at that. "Oh, you want to leave already?"

"No, that's not what I meant…"

They looked up when a bored looking waiter came to take their orders. Since everything was on Kaname, Sasuke ordered the most expensive thing they could offer. Kaname's cheek twitched, fighting off the frown that threatened to appear on his features. The teenager inwardly cheered up.

As the waiter leisurely strode away from them, he heard the man saying. "Having quite the appetite now, aren't we?" it was probably meant to be a funny remark, but the line came out dirty and almost made the teenager cringe.

He feigned a laugh. "It was such a long day in school. Of course I'd be starving by now."

"Good. This is a special occasion, so don't hold back. We can get all the time we need." beamed Kaname.

Sasuke jumped when a hand gripped his thigh and squeezed. He fisted his hands and forced himself to look at the hazel smiling eyes of the old man.

 _The asshole._

He carefully placed his own hand on Kaname's one, before gently wrenching it away from his thigh and grinned, going with the flow. "Thank you for your kind words Kaname. I appreciate it, really."

The older man smirked in reply. "You're very much welcome, Sasuke."

Sensing that the atmosphere was getting heavier by the minute, the teenager quickly added. "So, how did you meet my mother? I unfortunately never really got the chance to hear your story from her."

Doubt closed over Sasuke's mind when the man seemed reluctant to answer, but the latter regained his composure in no time and said instead. "I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Ebony eyes watched mindlessly the passing cars and people on the pavement going about their business. It was fairly late. The sky was inked black. Kaname's story stretched to hours on end.

The man kept talking and talking, not giving Sasuke a break to absorb all the information thrown at him. At some point, Sasuke eventually stopped listening, watching the man's lips moving, but not quite hearing a word.

The man entered into the smallest boring details. The only things Sasuke registered in his memory, were that he met his mother by sheer coincidence, stating that that was the best thing that ever happened to him (Sasuke nearly rolled his eyes). He stated that he almost lost hope in finding a person to share his life with, but thankfully, fate saved him by throwing his mother in his way. After that he stopped listening for good.

It was torture.

Now that he was sitting in the passenger's seat, finally heading back home, he kind of felt sick. Literally and figuratively. It turned out the thing he ordered took a toll on him. In order to distract himself with something, and not looking rude about it, he kept eating. And now he regretted greatly that decision.

As he rested his head on his palm, ignoring the man beside him, his eyelids started to feel heavy. He started dozing off, his head from time to time slipping from his palm. At last, he managed to pull a comfortable enough position, and went off to dreamland.

He failed to notice the amused smirk on Kaname's face, stealing peeks at him. In fact, he was so deep in his slumber, not even the hand that gripped gently his shoulder woke him up.

Not even when said hand was travelling dangerously downward, exploring the teenager's frame, or when the same hand hesitated for a second, before starting to feel up the boy's clad thigh.

Luckily for him, and definitely not for the owner of the hand, the clueless teenager let out a groan of discomfort and shifted in his seat, and then went back again to his sleep.

This time around, the curious hand shrank away and did not make any further advances.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

As they finally got home, Kaname approached the sleeping Uchiha and lightly shook him awake. "Sasuke wake up. We're home."

As Kaname gazed up, he saw Mikoto waving at them while watching from the kitchen window, a warm smile framing her pale face.

 _Fuck_. He thought to himself, but waved back at her nonetheless, giving the illusion of an equal genuine smile.

Glancing back at the teenager, he watched with hungry eyes the beautiful boy under his grasp while he was blinking numerous time, still dizzy from sleep. The man cursed the fate for taking this precious chance from him.

He straightened up and got out of the car as Sasuke did the same.

Sasuke frowned. He couldn't help but wonder why his skin was prickling him and made him feel itchy.

* * *

 _ **TBC**_

* * *

 **Animallover66666** : aw, thank you for leaving a comment! I hope this chapter answers your question.


	3. Une réalisation invraisemblable

**A/N** : So, I'm here again with a new update! My God this chapter was the longest one I've written so far. Stuff happen, so I'm just gonna go ahead and say that **sexual harassment occur in this chapter,** so please proceed cautiously.

Thank you so much for your reviews and nice words! I hope you'll enjoy the read.

* * *

III. Une réalisation invraisemblable

* * *

 _I sat alone, in bed 'til the morning  
I'm crying, "They're coming for me."  
And I tried to hold these secrets inside me  
My mind's like a deadly disease_

 ** _Halsey_** ~ ** _Control_**

* * *

He nearly made it.

He nearly made it out without being captured. But fuck the fate for screwing with his plan.

Sasuke inwardly seethed when his mother's soft hand caught his wrist before he could even reach the threshold.

He even endured the pain of waking up very early just so he could seize his chance and escape to meet his friends at Naruto's.

But of course, Things almost never seemed to go according to plan. And _of course_ a certain something, or someone in this case must get in the way of his scheming.

Mikoto gave her son the look of a very pissed mother. "Now, where do you think you're going, Sasuke Uchiha?" she folded her arms and narrowed her eyes at him. Sasuke felt like she was watching his very soul.

"Uh, umm- to meet my friends?"

He gulped when she narrowed her eyes even more so.

"Mother, it's Saturday! I didn't say anything about the party I missed yesterday. But, please let me have this day for me." the teenager pleaded. He knew Mikoto only wanted him to pass more time with Kaname to get to know each other better, but he simply did not like it when the other was around him. The man made him feel uncomfortable and restless.

He almost grinned triumphantly when Mikoto sighed and nodded her head. She reached forward and put her palm on his shoulder. She looked intently into her son's eyes. "I'm sorry Sasuke. I just really want you and Kaname to get along together. We're a family now after all, and I would never put another's comfort over your own."

Sasuke returned the nod and smiled. His hand found the nape of his neck and started rubbing the skin. "Don't worry about that, mother. We do get along with each other just fine." he lied.

He just hoped Mikoto wouldn't catch on that.

"I'm glad to hear it," she approached him some more. "But remember Sasuke, if there's anything bothering you, just tell me. I wouldn't like it if you hide things from me."

As he thought, she was indeed suspecting something wasn't right. Motherly instincts are scary.

He shrugged. "Sure, I wouldn't have it in me to hide things from you anyway."

She eyed him warily one more time, before she said brusquely, "Then go, go before I change my mind. I want you here by tomorrow morning." she playfully started pushing him outside. She winked at him then closed the door after him.

His smile was genuine this time.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke let out a heavy breath when he finally reached the Uzumaki's domicile. A peaceful region with nice neighbors and stunning views. It looked almost rural, with the mountains looming over and the not so very overwhelming presence of anything modern.

He jumped when something soft and fluffy moved around his leg. He looked down and was surprised to find Muffin looking up at him, mewling with pleading eyes.

Sasuke bent down and cradled the cat in his arms. He straightened up. "What are you doing out here beautiful? Has the dumbass forgotten about you again?" he patted gently the cat's head, and scratched him behind the ears.

Muffin emitted another mewl, as if agreeing with the 'dumbass' part. He leaned into Sasuke's touch, and purred loudly, content that he finally got someone's attention.

Sasuke couldn't believe Naruto forgot his cat outside. Kushina will kill him for sure if she found out.

Stepping up, he could hear loud music blaring inside the house.

 _Are they throwing a party this early in the morning?_

He rang the bell, and waited.

No one answered.

Of course no one will answer. Who could hear anything with something as loud as hell as that.

Instead, he went with plan B, and started banging the door with his palm. Again and again and again. Muffin blinked with each hit to the door.

Nothing, no one answered.

The brunet sighed. Time for plan C.

Looking at the pot sitting innocently in the far corner, he reached over and pulled a key from under the object. He hated doing this. He felt like he was breaching someone else's property, even though Kushina put the house key in that place for him or Sakura to use if need be.

As he started unlocking the door, he mentally embraced himself for the chaos that was meant to meet him inside. He counted from one to three, and then in one swift movement pushed the door open.

Sasuke gasped as the screeching music assaulted with no warning his sensitive ears. Muffin jumped from his arms, and run off somewhere inside the house. The brunet rapidly entered in and shut the door behind him before neighbors got to hear the commotion and start complaining.

He recognized the song. _Iris_ by _Goo Goo Dolls._

He carelessly removed his boots. As he went deeper through the hallway, his feet guiding him inside, he heard a terrible, almost glass-shattering voice singing along the song. _Naruto_

And then after, came a high pitched, but beautiful voice singing as well. _That's Sakura for sure._

Sasuke couldn't help but muse that sanity probably left his two poor friends as he watched them dancing and jumping in the living room. Naruto was holding a remote instead of a real microphone close to his mouth while singing, and Sakura was doing the same with a cucumber.

 _What the hell? Had the devil got a hold of their minds or something?_

He widened his eyes when Naruto saw him. The Uzumaki grinned, looking evil, and started approaching him.

Naruto knew he _sucked_ at singing. But that didn't stop him from doing it anyway. Mostly, he loved using his _gift_ against his friends, and annoy the hell out of them. Especially Sasuke.

' _And I don't want the world to see me,'_ he started singing, even more loudly this time, and carelessly dropped his muscled arm around Sasuke's shoulders. _'Cause I don't think that they'd understand,'_

He purposefully sang the last part in Sasuke's ear, and watched with clear amusement in his face as Sasuke closed his eyes in pure agony.

' _When everything's made to be broken,'_ now came Sakura's turn to sing. Thankfully, her voice didn't give Sasuke the urge to bang his head against something. She reached his other side and put her own arm on top of Naruto's and around the Uchiha's shoulders. _'I just want you to know who I am,'_

' _I just want you to know who I am,'_ Naruto and Sakura were singing at the same time. They kept swaying from side to side, like some drunk old farts, dragging the Uchiha with them.

' _I just want you to know who I am,'_ Sasuke couldn't help himself. He loved this song. He started singing along.

Now, all of them sang the last line together, _'I just want you to know who I am!'_

Naruto hugged his friends, and sent them toppling over the carpeted floor. They were laughing out loud as the song finally reached the end. Only the sound of their laughter echoed throughout the house.

He cherished this precious moment forever in his heart.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"Tu crois que l'abruti comprend ce qu'on est en train de dire?"

' _You think the dumbass understands what we're saying?'_

"J'en doute."

' _I doubt it.'_

Sasuke and Sakura winked at each other, barely holding their laughter.

"De même. Vraiment je m'inquiète sur lui. Ses notes ne me rassurent pas."

' _I doubt it too. Really, I'm concerned about him. His grades aren't reassuring.'_

"Mais bon, tu n'as pas à être concerné de cela. Je lui fais confiance. Seulement, le fait qu'il n'y ait pas de réponse de sa part n'est pas rassurant."

' _No need to worry. I trust him. Only, the fact that there is no response from his part doesn't reassure me in the least bit.'_

Sasuke and Sakura, while sitting cross legged on the carpeted floor with opened books scattered everywhere, both looked up with hopeful eyes at the sprawled Uzumaki on the couch, his back facing them as he was hiding his face in a pillow.

The Uchiha and the Haruno smiled widely when Naruto finally grumbled a muffled reply.

"Je vous conseille d'arrêter vos conneries. C'est futile. Ça ne marche pas. Je ne ferai pas vos devoir de Français. Débrouillez-vous tous seul."

' _You better stop bullshitting me. It's useless, and it's not working. I won't do your French homework. Do it on your own.'_

Sasuke's and Sakura's shoulders slumped in defeat. No matter what tactics they used, nothing seemed to work on the stubborn Uzumaki. He was two years their senior and had much more experience when it came to French. At least he could lend them a hand.

 _Bastard_.

"Man, you're no fun." Sakura lost all hope and instead pushed the books away and laid on her back. She used her arms as a pillow and watched mindlessly the ceiling.

They spent the whole morning dangling around and singing like some immature brats, and then after they started cleaning up their mess before Kushina got back home. They cooked something fast for lunch and things ended up with Naruto taking a nap, leaving Sasuke and Sakura to their French homework.

It was already six p.m

Time was running fast.

Sakura abruptly stood up and started picking up her books. She put them in a pile beside the couch and proceeded on wearing her leather jacket. "I'm out to bring some snacks and junk food. You better get your ass off the couch Naruto and start doing something useful. I'll bring some guests with me as well."

This seemed to get the Uzumaki's attention. He pulled his head from the pillow squinted up at her. "Huh? Who and Why?"

She shrugged. "The more people we are, the more fun we'll get."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

A pale hand ran over the CD storage cabinet, hesitant to make a choice. Sasuke looked over at his friend, as the latter offered him what looked like to be candy. He opened his palm to receive them. "Thanks."

Naruto nodded his head. "Sure. So, what do you think we should watch this time?" he rested his hands on his hips, seeming to be in the same dilemma as Sasuke.

He made a small step backwards that went unnoticed, and instead of sorting through the movies, he kept a close eye on the seemingly oblivious Uchiha. He knew he was a weird ass watching people like that. But he simply could not help it.

He watched closely the beautiful pale skin of his friend, the dark soft looking shiny hair that his hands itched to touch and stroke. Though his very favorite thing about the boy were the small dimples that greeted him whenever the brunet smiled. He would give absolutely anything to kiss them…

Naruto averted his eyes, and inhaled deeply.

Being around the Uchiha was toxic to his heart.

The doorbell ring got his attention. He nodded toward the door. "I got it."

As he opened it, Kushina greeted her son with a grin, and shoved in his arms all the shopping bags she was carrying. She closed the door behind her before she kissed Naruto softly on the cheek. She walked to the living room, greeted Sasuke with a kiss too, then went to her bedroom, while Naruto followed her like a loyal dog. "So, how was grandma?"

She turned on the lights of her room. "Oh, she's more than fine. We went for a run today."

Naruto looked surprised. He threw unceremoniously the bags on the floor. "Oh...wow, I'm impressed."

Kushina laughed. "Right? She's still bitter that you hadn't visited her though."

"Next time for sure." he flashed her a smile.

"I'll hold you to your word. Now, get your ass out of here, I want to change." She started undressing.

"Wait, wait Mom! I just wanted to say that a _lot_ of friends will come to stay over for the night. We'll watch a movie together."

She halted her movements. She eyed her son, but shrugged nonetheless. "It doesn't bother me. I'm going out to meet up with some friends anyway."

Naruto sighed, relieved. He started walking out before she got to change her mind.

"You better not break anything." he heard her yelling after him.

"Don't worry, we won't!"

With that, he walked back to the living room.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Naruto found Sasuke settled on the couch, looking but not quite watching the tv. He flopped down the seat beside him and rested his head on the other's shoulder.

They could always do this, right? As long as it's labeled friendship, Naruto was safe from suspicion.

"Sasuke," he said softly.

"Ummmmwhat?" came the muffled reply.

"How did it go? Your date with your stepfather." he didn't know why he was asking this all of a sudden, but he just found it weird that Sasuke never brought this up.

He sensed the body he was using as a pillow actually stiffening. "Boring as fuck. I hated it."

Naruto felt guilty for ruining Sasuke's peaceful mood. He didn't stress on him the details. The Uchiha didn't look that eager to talk about it.

An idea crossed his mind.

He yawned loudly, shifted in his seat and draped his strong arms around the youngest's waist. "I'm sleepy," he breathed out and hid his face behind Sasuke's back, hugging his waist tightly, and clinging to him for dear life.

"Let go asshole, you're suffocating me." Sasuke didn't sound angry, neither irritated. Just tired.

The Uchiha felt rather than saw the shaking of Naruto's head, as the latter wouldn't let go of him willingly. So instead, they remained in this position, letting the tv sounds washing over the silence.

Sasuke didn't say anything when the hold around his waist tightened some more.

Almost instantly, overwhelming sadness washed over him.

He wondered when Naruto will finally make his move.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

He was a coward, and he knew it.

This was the perfect chance.

They were alone. The mood-setting was nice and peaceful.

The perfect chance to finally let everything out. To finally make the next step that only seemed to get farther and farther away with each passing day.

Naruto subconsciously squeezed the Uchiha even more, grieving and dreading his lack of courage.

The chance finally represented itself. But he was doing nothing about it.

He sincerely hoped he will be accorded more chances.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

The house was lively with teenagers.

Sakura got back home, holding huge bags full of junk food, with a squad of teenagers following her. She didn't get the whole school of course, only those close to their circle.

Kushina went out the moment Sakura came in. They chatted by the doorstep for ten minutes since Kushina was in a hurry. Normally, their conversations would last for hours.

Naruto was talking with some of his football mates in the kitchen, while Sasuke was apologizing to Neji for missing his party.

The Uzumaki shared a fist bump with Kiba, Shino and Lee. "Where are the others?" he asked them with a grin.

The shaggy haired captain shrugged. "Couldn't make it I guess. Shikamaru and Chouji are out with their girlfriends."

"Oh," Naruto said, raising his eyebrows. "I thought they were fre-"

"Lucky bastards."

They were all surprised with Shino's comment.

They burst out laughing.

On the other side of the house, a more calm and reserved conversation was taking place between Sasuke and Neji.

"What mother pulled on me was terrible, I swear."

"I understand, kind of get the same problem with my own uncle. You know, sometimes he would ask me to follow his daughters around to check on them."

Sasuke looked confused. "No way!" he started laughing. "and you-you would do it?"

"Yes." Neji deadpanned

Sasuke was struggling to keep the horrified look from taking over his features.

Ok, that wasn't creepy.

Not at all.

"I'm kidding." he chuckled. "Of course not. Hanabi is still a child who I trust, and I wouldn't honestly dare stalk Hinata when she's out on a date. That's fucking weird."

Sasuke sighed in relief.

Neji started putting his dark long hair into a bun. Sasuke may never admit it, but he was simply in love with his friend's hair. He even contemplated the idea of growing his own hair out, but gave up nonetheless since it was a lot of work.

A little bit farther from them, Gaara sat in a chair, closing his eyes as Sakura and Ino were doing his makeup.

The girls seemed to be enjoying themselves. Gaara, not so very much.

Muffin was having a hard time getting anyone's attention. He first went to his master, but eventually the latter was so immersed in his discussion he barely noticed him.

He hopped from place to place, avoiding the strangers. He was looking around for his red headed mother Kushina. Nobody showered him with as much love and affection as the woman did. Except maybe…

He started running, mewling, and threw his whole body on the Uchiha, startling him.

Sasuke chuckled, but obliged nonetheless to the cat's demands.

"Everyone, get your places." Naruto barked out to get their attention. "It's movie time."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Naruto intentionally got the closest place to Sasuke.

The floor had scattered teenagers everywhere. Kiba had all the couch for himself. He was the most agitated (and annoying) one between his peers, and always distracted and irritated those close to him. It was only expected that no one neared his side.

The rest of the guys occupied the carpeted floor in various positions. Ino and Sakura sat beside each other, cuddling and snickering to themselves, and sometimes squealing and stealing glances of the romantic view that was Gaara stroking his boyfriend's hair, with the latter having his head resting on Gaara's lap.

They prepared popcorn before they settled down. Currently, they were already half way through the movie. Some were drifting off to sleep, while others were already snoring.

Unsurprisingly, from time to time, Naruto would be bewildered when his focus would shift completely to the Uchiha. They already turned off the lights, the tv screen being the only illumination available, so he wasn't concerned by the others' presence around them. He would watch closely the simplest reactions of the boy, from the slightest frown, to the smallest smile. He was so deep in his thoughts he literally jumped with Sasuke when the latter's phone buzzed loudly through the room.

Sasuke retrieved his phone from his pocket, eyes wary. As he went through his text messages, his frown got deeper.

Naruto tentatively nudged the Uchiha's side. "Sasuke, what's wrong?"

Sasuke looked up at Naruto. Worry etched clearly on his face. "I have to go, it's mother. She wants me back home, like right about now."

"What?" now was Naruto's turn to frown. He whispered back. "It's so very late right now. Just tell her you'll be staying the night at my place."

Sasuke looked desperate. "I'm sorry I can't. Apparently, it's something urgent."

Naruto blinked. "Well, at least let me accompany you home."

"Don't worry about it. It's not really that far from here."

Naruto looked skeptical. "I insist-"

"Naruto, please. Don't worry, I can handle this."

The Uzumaki sighed in defeat. "Fine. Just, if anything happens, call us, ok?"

Sasuke returned a weak smile that failed to reassure his friend. "I will, I promise."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke was stupid and he knew it. He should've just accepted Naruto's offer.

He felt like he was being watched.

He was scared shirtless.

Keeping his head low, he quickened his steps, and stayed as far away as possible from any dark suspicious looking corners. He ignored his guts that were screaming at him to run, to get the hell out of here.

Mistake number one.

Oh God, he had a terrible feeling. He nearly cried out in joy when he finally saw his house looming in the distance. He could make it safe and sane.

Just when he was about to break into a sprint, a hand clamped firmly around his mouth. It was so damn tight it _hurt_.

Fear was suffocating him, hindering his movements. His arms felt heavy and clumsy, and his legs nearly buckled under his weight.

He was petrified. Horror and terror clouded over his mind when the assaulter started dragging him to somewhere he couldn't see.

Sasuke started clawing frantically at the hand closing over his mouth. He thrashed around in the attacker's grasp, using all of his forces to keep that faint hope of escaping that was growing weaker intact.

No matter how much he resisted the arms secured tightly around him, they did not bulge.

Sasuke was losing hope. For the slightest of seconds he dropped his guard. That was his mistake number two, for the attacker used this to his advantage, and hauled the teenager deeper into what was apparently a well-hidden place.

Sasuke felt like crying.

 _This was not happening…this could not be happening-_

He gasped when a hand started exploring savagely his whole body, starting from his neck, then cascading dangerously downward. He was dimly aware of the mouth licking and teasing his earlobe.

Much to Sasuke's dismay, the assaulter blocked his body to a wall with his hips, then used with his free hand to unbuckle his belt. Horrible shivers shook his body. He felt his skin crawling under his garments.

Suddenly, a new wave of adrenaline rushed to his veins, making his muscles throb and twitch. He stood still for a time, his mind reeling, thinking over the best possible of ways to win himself a safe escape with no grave repercussions.

He was itching to move, to thrash around, to escape.

To fight back.

But he merely made himself stay still, for his aggressor was far taller, bigger and stronger than he was, his body looming over him, holding him firmly against his chest.

 _'Calm down, don't panic. Use your brain'_ he thought to himself.

Just when he was about to proceed with his plan, he heard chatter and laughter in the distance, apparently heading directly to where they stood from the way the noises increased in volume.

Sasuke was even more surprised when his assaulter swiftly released him, and run off in a mindblowing speed.

He didn't know who saved him, but he could kiss their faces right here right then.

That, if he could move at all, because the instance the assaulter run away, he collapsed to his knees, and drew in haggard shallow breaths.

Breathing turned out to be a challenge in itself. His lungs hurt him so much Sasuke thought they would stop functioning. He clutched his shirt to the point his knuckles turned white, looking about to pop out.

His heart wasn't any better. Throbbing and beating wildly in his chest. All his limbs were hurting, as pain shoot from everywhere.

He was panicking. He was panicking and he should stop it before it got worse.

He started counting from one to ten, very slowly, taking one breath at a time. It didn't work at the first try, but after a while he managed to get a hold of his breathing.

With great efforts, he stood up, and started limping back home.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke never thought he'd be this fucking happy to see the main door again. He wasn't sure he was ready to spill the beans to Mikoto.

 _Hell_ , he was still himself in shock and denial.

He wasn't naive neither clueless about these things. Sexual harassers were all over the country, assaulting girls, and sometimes preying on boys as well. But he just never thought that this could ever happen to him.

Him being in this _kind of situation_ never seemed optionable in his head.

It was such an absurd thing to think about. Something that was very highly unlikely to happen.

Or maybe he simply took his safety for granted.

Taking one step at a time, he tried marching correctly, ignoring the pain in his legs as to not raise suspicion from the part of his mother. He was sure that sooner or later, he'll inform her of this… _unfortunate_ event, but for now he just wanted his bed and some peace, and nothing else.

He still felt an ache in his chest, and his jaw still felt sore, but he'll live.

When he opened the door and went inside, he found the house eerily silent. As he dragged his legs through the hallway, he could at last hear water running coming from the kitchen.

There, he found Mikoto leaning over the washbasin, busy with the dishes.

He frowned. Normally whenever she expected his arrival from outside, she would sit and wait in the living room.

Unless, she wasn't expecting him in the first place.

He cleared his throat. "Mom, I'm home."

He was shocked when she turned around and gave him a look of surprise. "Sasuke? Son, I thought you were staying the night with your friend-" she gasped mid-sentence, her eyes widening. "Oh my God Sasuke! It's so very late, why have you returned at this hour!? What if something happened to you!" she wiped her wet hands with a kitchen towel while advancing toward him.

Sasuke was beyond shocked. He was literally speechless.

 _If his mother wasn't the one who sent him the text message. Then, who did?_

"Son, why are you so pale? Please, Sasuke answer me, what's wrong?" he could see her fingers dragging over his face, yet not quite feeling them.

Almost instantly, Kaname walked inside the kitchen. Mikoto had her back facing him, so she did not see the way he gave her son a vicious smirk, neither how his eyes narrowed in a subjective way, gleaming with mirth and something that could almost be called fulfillment.

Sasuke had his question answered.

The Uchiha suddenly felt lightheaded, his stomach doing flip flops. His breathing turned heavy, and his throat felt so so dry, ready to close off and kill him from lack of oxygen.

He averted his eyes from the man's haunting cruel gaze, and lowered his head. "N-no no, i-it's nothing to w-worry about." his voice was so hoarse it terrified him. "I kind of felt sick, and came back home, that's all." he pried Mikoto's hands off him, and started walking to the staircase instead. He heard her calling his name after him, but he ignored her nonetheless and kept walking to his room. He nearly lost his balance numerous times, but fortunately managed to make it to his room without making a show.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Meanwhile, Mikoto stood in the kitchen with folded arms. Her eyebrows were knitted together in a deep frown. She was gnawing on her lower lip. Just when she had her mind set on getting to her son and addressing his problem, a hand on her shoulder made her turn around and look up at her fiancé.

His expression could almost be interpreted as a sad downhearted one. He shook his head. "Just leave him be," he lifted his irises up to the ceiling. "Maybe he got into a fight with his friend."

Mikoto seemed lost in her thoughts for a while. Probably debating whether to approach her son, or to give him some time alone.

She chose the latter. She sighed and looked down. "I guess you're right. I'll speak to him tomorrow."

Kaname managed to conceal a victorious smile. "Come with me, love. You need some sleep."

With that, he subtly guided Mikoto back to their room. He swiftly retrieved his phone from his pocket, and sent a quick short text message.

This time around, he didn't bother hiding his smirk.

 _This is gonna be fun…_

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

In his completely dark room, very dimly illuminated by the moonlight, Sasuke was kneeling on the floor beside his bed. His breathing was growing shallower by the minute. His eyes were wild.

With very shaky hands, he held his phone close to his face, alternating between writing and deleting phone numbers. He honestly didn't know whom to contact neither what to say.

Should he call his friends and inform them of what happened? Or should he simply take the easy way out and call the police?

He would've made his decision in a heartbeat, if it weren't for the fact that he was hopelessly and utterly terrified. He was scared the psycho will cause him, or his mother any harm.

He jumped and threw his phone away when it buzzed in his hands, signaling that he got a new text message.

Sasuke's blood run cold. Goosebumps broke across his arms, legs, stomach. His scalp prickled him. His body was already reacting to what was to come.

It took him more than courage to pick his phone from the floor.

He started reading the text message.

He wished he hadn't.

 _'If you as much as say one word to anyone about what happened -'_

Tears were already flowing freely down Sasuke's cheeks.

 _'She will **suffer**.' _

By now he was sobbing his heart out.

* * *

 _ **TBC**_

* * *

 **A/N** : I gotta say that this was my favorite chapter so far. I just loved writing it. I had all kind of feelings hitting me at once.

Thank you so much for reading, I hope I'll get to see you again for the next update.


	4. Une réalité inconcevable

**A/N:** This chapter has some kind of disturbing scenes in it. Don't worry, it's nothing over the top, but still I can only say read with caution.

Thank you so much for your lovely reviews. I swear they mean a lot to me (they make my days brighter and school more bearable è_é).

Hope you'll enjoy this one!

* * *

IV. Une réalité inconcevable

* * *

 _I'm laughing,_

 _I'm crying_

 _It feels like,_

 _I'm dying_

 ** _Melanie Martinez~Pity Party_**

* * *

Sakura was annoyed. Beyond annoyed.

She was so irritated with her stupid friend. "I can't believe you missed your chance of yesterday. Like, why the hell did I even bother going out for three fucking hours! A phone call would've been more than enough to invite the others." she ruffled her messy hair in an infatuated way, while grabbing a milk jug from the fridge.

"It's not that easy you know." Naruto was sulking. He was seated at the kitchen table, his breakfast laying untouched before him. The rest of their friends left an hour ago, some though insisted on leaving yesterday night.

Sasuke hadn't contacted them. Probably the urgent thing he left for wasn't something serious after all.

She yawned loudly as she poured herself some milk in a mug. "Stop with the lame excuses Naruto. Just admit you're such a wimp." she started drinking her milk, but not before sending the Uzumaki a smile that was clearly mocking him.

Naruto clenched his hand into a fist, but didn't say anything back to Sakura. She was right.

He was such a fucking coward.

He flinched when soft hands caught gently his. There was so much sympathy in Sakura's eyes, Naruto was finding it hard to maintain the eye contact. "I'm sorry, I wasn't being considerate. Confessing to someone is certainly not the easiest thing to do. But you've been friends with him for years now Naruto, I'm sure even if Sasuke doesn't feel the same way about you-which I highly doubt-he'll give you at least a chance."

Sakura gave him a small reassuring squeeze of his hand, a smile sporting her face. Naruto sighed, and passed a hand vigorously through his hair. "I think you're right."

He closed his eyes for a time, but when he opened them, a new resolution was set in their depths. He stood abruptly from his chair. "I will confess my love to Sasuke Uchiha!"

Sakura chuckled and clapped loudly. "Well, that sounded a bit corny, but fuck it! The all mighty Uzumaki Naruto will finally make his move YEEEES!" she was now laughing out loud, looking cheerful. She gave him a brief but strong hug.

"What's happening here? What's all the fuss about?" Kushina walked inside the kitchen, nursing in her arms her cute bundle of fur. She reached for the cat food in a cupboard and gave the teenagers an expectant look.

Sakura smiled, with more malice this time. Naruto gave her a look that screamed _don't-you-fucking-dare._

Of course the Haruno ignored him, and instead walked toward Kushina and whispered something in her ear.

Naruto bit his cheek hard, stopping himself from swearing and cursing.

"Oh my God!" Kushina beamed at him, her smile looking so wide and genuine. She looked back and forth from Sakura to Naruto. "I mean he'll finally gonna do it!?"

Sakura nodded frantically her head in delightment.

Kushina looked back to her son again, joy filling her eyes. "Son, I can't believe it took you this damn long to do it! I swear I thought you were already dating him." and the two women started jumping and squealing together.

 _Huh? Was I that obvious?_

He swiftly escaped the kitchen, his cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Bright.

Everything was bright. So damn bright.

Did he die? Has he already left the mortal world?

There was a jolt. He could still feel _things._

So, he wasn't dead after all.

 _Disappointment. He was disappointed._

With fluttering lashes, dark orbs were opened to the painful assault of the sun. Sasuke groaned loudly and brought with difficulty his arm over his eyes. He seemed to be in pain.

Instead of being outspread comfortably on his bed, he found himself splayed on the hard floor.

He was so tired, and _mentally_ exhausted. His bones weighted heavier than usual.

With great efforts, he brought his legs up to his chest, curled his arms around them and hid his face.

Just for now. Just for a short while. He could pretend nothing ever happened. He could go back to the time when there was no Kaname in their lives, no trouble blocking their path.

Just he and his mother, working their way through life, supporting each other in the worst days, and rejoicing in the best ones.

Of course, he couldn't escape reality for long.

He shrieked in horror when his current worst nightmare opened the door and greeted him with a fake-ass smile.

"Why Good morning Sasuke! Slept well?"

Sasuke never felt this much hatred toward anyone before in his life. Just the sight of this fucked up person repulsed him greatly. "Get the fuck out of here!" he all but screeched at him.

Kaname faked hurt. "Now now, where are your manners at? I'm just doing your mother a favor. She already left for her yoga session." he took one step forward. "We're home alone."

Sasuke hated himself for flinching. Now, he gave the asshole the satisfaction of knowing that he held some kind of power over him.

Which he indeed did.

Bracing his arms on the nightstand and the bedside, he hauled himself up. Not before he hid inside his shirt sleeve a small but sharp looking knife.

Kaname took another step toward him. "I gotta say, I kind of… _just kind of_ -feel sorry for what I've done yesterday. Would you forgive me S'uke?"

The bastard was getting on Sasuke's nerves more than anything. In his fit of fury, he threw his body on Kaname and knocked him to the floor.

He hastily fetched for the knife, and aimed for the man's chest. He sincerely hoped this will cause the bastard some great damage.

His wish wasn't fulfilled. In a second, his back met harshly the floor, drawing from him a pained gasp. The knife was no longer in his hold. It was hovering right above his cheek.

"Listen brat," the pressure above his cheek intensified. Sasuke felt his heart thudding in his throat. "it would be in your best interest if you don't initiate anything stupid." by now, blood was gushing out from his cheek.

He wasn't aware when this happened, because the next moment, Kaname was holding his wrist, and with an excruciating slow pace, he started slashing the pale skin. Sasuke widened his eyes. He gritted his teeth, determined not to let his pained gasps out.

"I'm really not one to fuck with." Kaname hissed in his ear.

Blood was oozing freely from his wounds. Glancing at his wrist, he winced at the horrendous sight. The fucker wasn't going any easier on him, cutting his flesh and looking ecstatic about it.

Sasuke knew it wasn't wise of him to do it. But he ignored the rational part of his brain and did it anyway.

He spat in the man's face.

There was just something so damn _satisfying_ about this small insulting gesture. The way the older man looked at him with intense killing intent, so damn red from anger the boy could visibly see a vein throbbing in his forehead.

Such a comical scene.

Sasuke couldn't help it. He started laughing.

He wasn't sure if this could be called hysteria, but the urge to laugh never seemed so tempting.

Suddenly, everything seemed funnier in his head. He kept laughing until tears formed in the corners of his eyes.

Surprise and satisfaction took over his features when Kaname stopped his abuse on his pale wrist and threw the knife away.

The man gradually lifted his body up, looking so damn _confused,_ and speechless, which just made Sasuke laugh some more.

Kaname straightened up and quickly made it to the door. He narrowed his eyes at the teenager who was now sitting up holding his bloodied wrist in his hand. His smile was still intact.

The man may never admit this, but this was actually giving him the creeps.

He gave Sasuke a nasty vile look. "Laugh all you want brat, but you'll regret it soon."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke honestly didn't know what had gotten into his head.

Why he couldn't suppress the laughter. Why he acted on his instincts and gave in to them.

Nothing seemed to make any sense.

His _life_ didn't seem to make any fucking sense anymore.

He was probably losing his mind. Yes, that was the most logical explanation.

Glancing down at his damaged wrist, he watched closely the way his blood was freely seeping from the cuts.

The asshole was careful with the knife. The cuts didn't look that deep. At least, not deep in a life threatening way.

Sasuke contemplated for a long while his wounds, wondering whether he should just keep watching his life bleeding out of him, or hurry on with the process by deepening his wounds.

For a crazy second, his hand started reaching for the already stained knife on his right.

Then the rational part of his brain finally kicked in, waking Sasuke from his reverie.

The teenager was ashamed. Truly and deeply ashamed.

He couldn't believe just now, he considered harming himself.

That just now, the idea of killing himself lured him in.

A sob full of anguish and sorrow escaped his mouth. He almost failed his mother. His friends.

His father.

Itachi.

Reaching over to the top drawer of his desk, the Uchiha fetched for his first aid kit.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke spent the rest of his day hidden in the comfort of his bed. Nothing can convince him to abandon it.

His sleep was so damn restless. He kept dozing on and off, dreams and reality mingling together to form some sort of hallucination in the real world.

At times, nothing would make sense in his head. He would see things. Things taking the shape and form of foreign objects he wasn't familiar with. It was so damn weird, it was slowly driving him insane.

But at others, his hallucinations would manifest in the simplest forms. His mother, Itachi, Sakura, Naruto's cat, and Naruto himself.

Sasuke found it interesting how Naruto was the dominating figure in his hallucinations. He would see his friend approaching his bedside, face all warm and sunny with his usual beaming smile. Instead of experiencing terror and horror at seeing those things, his feelings alternated from surprise (in a good way) to contentment, then lastly comfort and a huge sense of safety. _Protection_. The feeling would merely intensify with the way Naruto would keep comforting him with his simple affectionate gestures and sweet words.

 _It's okay Sasuke. Everything's gonna be okay._

He would say.

 _I'm here for you, we're all her for you._

And Sasuke would believe him.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Peeking from a slightly opened side of the door, Mikoto contemplated the sleeping form of her son. Worry was inked all over her face.

Her son hadn't talked to her since yesterday. Instead of coming down and spending some quality time with her, he kept himself locked in his room all day long.

When she checked on him earlier, she found his forehead slightly feverish, but not in a life threatening way.

She even asked him if she should get him a doctor, but he politely declined, and returned back to his blankets.

She was getting helpless, and she didn't know what to do.

Glancing back at the person standing in the lobby, she motioned for him to approach.

"I'm really sorry for bringing you all the way here. Sasuke had been acting a bit strange this morning, but he wouldn't talk to me about it." she whispered with an apologetic smile.

Naruto flashed her a grin. "No need to worry yourself auntie. I think I can handle this."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

The Uchiha was sensing something. Some kind of movements.

Something approaching him, getting nearer and nearer-

His fist flew from under the blankets in a startling speed, but was skillfully blocked and stopped.

"Calm down, Uchiha."

Sasuke had to blink more than once, when the face of his idiotic friend presented itself.

"You-you're not a dream, are you?" Sasuke knew he looked ridiculous with his question, but he just couldn't help it. He honestly couldn't differ between the real world Naruto and the one he'd had visiting him in his dreams.

Naruto gave him a confused look. "Has something gotten into your head?"

Sasuke pinched his arm hard, making sure that this was indeed reality, and not a fragment from his blissful imagination.

Looking up again, Naruto was still there.

He sighed in relief. He never thought he would get this extremely happy to see Naruto again.

Before he knew it, he was on his feet, embracing his friend warmly.

Apparently, something was definitely wrong with his head.

He nonetheless tightened his hold around the Uzumaki's imposing frame, relishing in the sensations of safety and protection that he was craving for long.

Naruto was speechless. He was gaping like a fish, and honestly didn't know how to react to this.

"Sa-"

"Please. Just-just for a minute."

Eventually, Naruto got over his initial shock and let a warm smile overtake his features. He let a hand travel to the mass of ebony hair on his shoulder, and hugged back the boy in his arms.

He had no idea what all this was about, to be hugged all of a sudden by someone he cared greatly for. Not that he was complaining.

In fact, this was one of the best things that happened to him in the last few weeks.

He sincerely hoped things like this will become more frequent in his life.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

On the other side of the door, a hidden dark figure was standing watching the scene of the teenagers unfolding in front of his eyes.

The grim expression on his face was unmistakable.

His hatred and anger were very much palpable.

Only one thought was roaming the insides of his mind.

 _Soon. Very soon._

* * *

 ** _TBC_**

* * *

 **Pooja** : Aww, thank you so much for your nice comment! I remember the day I received the notification that someone left me a review, I was like (è_é) at first, angry at my parents for something they did, then I read _your_ review and my face changed to something like :') and I swear my father gave me the _are-you-okay_ look because not even a second ago I was ready to kill something. I'm really glad that you enjoyed the last chapter. I had such a wonderful time writing it, so hearing that someone did like it is honestly so rewarding. Thank you again! I hope you'll stay tunned for the next chapters!

 **Guest** : Thank you so much for leaving a review! Sadly I can't promise you anything and I'm really sorry for that. But in any case, I'll see if I can insert a lime somewhere...


	5. Un amour improbable

**Sexual harassment** ahead! PLease read with caution.

* * *

V. Un amour improbable

* * *

 _Don't wanna live in fear and loathing  
I wanna feel like I am floating  
Instead of constantly exploding  
In fear and loathing._

 ** _Marina and the Diamonds_ _~Fear And Loathing_**

* * *

In the last few weeks Kaname came to live with them, Sasuke had noticed something about the man.

He almost never made any move on him while his mother was in the vicinity, or anyone for that matter. He would treat him very casually like a normal stepfather would do, probably as to not get unwanted attention. So, whenever they were home alone, Sasuke would hurry to his room and lock himself in. He was the only owner of his key room.

He still didn't know how to get himself out of this mess with no damage whatsoever caused to him or the people close to him. So far, not even one soul knew about the sexual harassment he was subjected to weekly, at times even daily.

He may never admit this, but he did not doubt the man's words when he threatened his mother's life. He was a fucking psycho, and Sasuke was the living proof to reinforce that statement.

From times to times, his wrist would start aching and make him gasp in pain. He made sure to hide the cuts from any prying gazes with a bandage at all times. Especially from his friends. Sasuke was more than sure they would take it the wrong way.

Sasuke also came to notice another thing. While he was still the victim of Kaname's sickening acts, he realized that the man's attitude toward him was no longer as aggressive as it used to be. Which was not reassuring in the least bit.

 _Did he grow tired of his game?_

 _Or was this simply a part of his scheming?_

"Earth to Sasuke!"

The Uchiha started when emerald clear eyes gazed intensely into his, before slowly backing away.

Sakura was gradually growing irritated with her friend. "Geez, you've been out of it a lot lately. Is there something on your mind? Just spill out, you know."

Hearing her brother yelling and screaming and being his noisy self outside her room, she shouted. "Yusuke, cut it out!"

Sasuke ruffled his hair in an exasperated way. "I'm sorry, I'm just a bit tired."

As per usual, Sakura invited him to her house so they could do school work together. Something they did very often. Naruto wasn't with them for now though, since he had football training.

"Are you okay? Do you need me to get you something?" Sakura asked with a hint of concern in her voice.

Sasuke shook his head. "No, don't worry yourself over this. More importantly, I think I should go, it's getting late."

Sakura checked briefly her watch. "If you insist. Wait here, I'll get my father to give you a ride home."

"No-no need to, really. Thank you Sakura."

The Haruno looked skeptical. "Are you sure?"

Sasuke merely nodded his head.

She accompanied him downstairs to the main door, and bid him goodbye with a hug.

As soon as the boy disappeared down the street corner, the girl's eyebrows were deeply furrowed. She reached for her phone and quickly dialed a familiar number.

"You're right, something isn't right with him. I think you should confront him about it."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Lately, Sasuke'd been spending most of his time with his friends. Looking for any kind of excuse just so he wouldn't risk staying alone with the thing that was turning his life into hell.

He calculated everything in his head, and almost never returned home only when he was sure his mother was already there.

So, you could imagine his shock when he didn't find her when he got back.

He found his nightmare instead.

"Where is she?" he bared his teeth at the man like an animal, looking ready to lash his attack.

Kaname smirked. "Apparently, she'd had something to take care of. She went out."

Sasuke was panicking with the way the fucker was studying his body like an open statue. He gulped. He was now thinking of one and only thing. To escape.

As soon as the idea grazed his mind, he started running like a mad man to his room, startling Kaname in the process.

He didn't care about anything anymore. He set his mind on one single thing. To get to his room. To safety.

He nearly fell in his hurry to climb the stairs. Just when he made it to the last stair, a hand clamped tightly around his ankle. He fell heavily to the ground, grunting and groaning in pain.

He gasped when the man's body fell on his.

 _So fucking heavy!_

He started thrashing around, sending fists flying everywhere. He didn't care where they landed. He just wanted out and preferably now. He inhaled sharply when Kaname finally got a hold of his wrists and pinned them above his head.

The asshole was purposefully tightening his grip around his wounded wrist. Sasuke gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. By now the bandaged wrist was already stained with blood.

He wrinkled his nose in disgust when a tongue dragged a straight line from his jawline up to his temple. In fact, he nearly threw up when the same tongue attacked his mouth.

 _Fuck fuck fuck fuck!_

The man was now nibbling on the teenager's lips, ravaging the smooth skin and sucking on it.

Sasuke was feeling nausetic. Closing his eyes tightly, he tried to reorganize the chaos in his mind, and start scheming a plan in his head. Trying his leg out, he was surprised to find it free, not restrained by anything.

It could work in his favor.

Luckily, he managed to knee the fucker hard in the nuts. Sasuke inwardly smiled when a shriek of pain was emitted from the man.

Feeling the hold around his wrists slackening, he fisted his hand and sent it crashing against Kaname's jaw.

He didn't spare one second to admire his work. In a flash, he pulled himself up from the ground and ran to his room. He locked the door and leaned against it as an act of precaution. He was shaking all over from the rush of adrenaline. His heart was beating wildly.

He gulped when something started banging on his door. He realized in horror that Kaname was making his way through forcefully.

He scanned quickly his room. There was nowhere else to escape.

It was by pure joy and great sense of relief when he finally heard the familiar car horn of his mother's car. She was finally home and the banging on his door finally stopped.

Sasuke exhaled deeply.

This was getting out of control, and he should do something about it. Preferably very very soon.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"Yusuke, you brat! Get back here." Sasuke yelled, then chased after the said brat before grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.

"Stop thrashing around or I'll tell your sister." he warned, shaking the boy back and forth. Sasuke couldn't help but feel regret for agreeing to pick up the boy from his school.

"Ow, you're hurting me Sasuke-nii!"

Sasuke's cheek twitched. "Stop calling me that."

Yusuke pouted cutely, his baby face demonstrated a look of pure innocence. "But… but my sister told me you liked it when I call you brother."

Sasuke shot him a look, but instantly softened his facial expression.

He sighed.

They were currently heading to the Haruno's. Sakura called in sick this morning. She had the flu and her parents were not home, so she begged him to pick up her brother from the kindergarten in her place.

The kid'd been wandering on and off, yelling and screaming and doing all the annoying shit that brats normally did.

He was doing a fine job at irritating Sasuke.

But as troublesome as this task turned out to be, he couldn't really refuse her the favor. He owed Sakura more than that.

Sasuke glanced down when he felt something nudging the hem of his shirt. "Sasuke-nii, can you buy me this, pleaaaaase?"

They stopped in front of a candy store. Yusuke was pointing at a huge stupid looking lollipop that waved back at them.

Sasuke sighed again.

"Listen kid, I'll get it for you, BUT only if you stay still and follow my orders. Got it?"

Yusuke nodded eagely with a wide smile, his grin showing a set of small white teeth. A tooth was missing though.

As promised, Sasuke bought the offending lollipop to the now tame brat.

He knew this would be short lived, and Yusuke will get back to his aggravating attitude as soon as he got done with his lollipop. He just hoped by then they'd already be at the Haruno's.

They kept walking, Yusuke singing and humming while licking his candy with the Uchiha walking beside him, dozing off.

At one point, Yusuke held Sasuke's free hand and Sasuke held his back.

"Sakura! We're here."

They finally made it to Sakura's house.

Both Sasuke and Yusuke turned their heads as Sakura opened the front doors.

The Uchiha winced.

 _Shit, she looks terrible._

Sakura was literally a mess. From her pinkish locks to her face. Her eyes and nose were red with pinkly tinted cheeks. Her hair held a story of its own.

"Good morning Sasu-" she sneezed midsentence, holding her handkchied above her nose. "Sorry Sasuke. The flu'd been killing me lately."

Sasuke frowned, "You okay now?"

She nodded. She sniffed then shifted her gaze to her brother.

Yusuke was still eating his lollipop. He released Sasuke's hand then ran straight to his sister. He wrapped both his small arms around her waist.

Before he could walk past his sister to inside, he turned around and flashed Sasuke a grin. "Thank you Sasuke-nii!"

Sasuke couldn't help the smile tugging at his lips.

"Thank you Sasuke." Sakura opened the door wider. With a smile she said, "Here, come inside. Naruto is here as we-" they both turned around when Naruto showed his face. "Oh well, speaking of the devil."

The Uzumaki strode in their way.

Sasuke frowned. "What are you doing here? I thought you had football training with your team?"

Naruto laughed awkwardly, rubbing vigorously his nape in an act of nervousness. He gave Sakura a troubled look. The Haruno nearly face palmed at his stupidity.

She thought Naruto had already informed Sasuke that he was going ahead of him to her house. Apparently he did not.

She seethed inwardly at her stupid, stupid friend.

An unspoken thing passed between them. Sasuke didn't catch on it.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

In the end, Naruto and Sasuke both walked back home together, holding a peaceful conversation.

Naruto hated what he was about to do to his friend, but he simply had no other choice.

Scanning briefly his surroundings, he grabbed tightly the Uchiha by the waist and dragged him to a vacant alleyway.

Sasuke was so damn confused. "Asshole! The fuck you're do-" He trailed off when realization finally dawned on him. He started fighting back. "Naruto let go, l-let go Naruto!"

His efforts were futile. Naruto's grip was strong like steel.

"Please, Naruto don't." he pleaded his friend when the latter held him tightly by the wrists. His face showed no emotion whatsoever.

"D-don't,"

Naruto pushed down the Uchiha's sleeve to reveal a heavy piece of bandage around his wrist. He slowly worked on it and started unfolding it.

At that moment, Naruto saw red.

Apparently his secret was discovered.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

The Uchiha gasped sharply when he was slammed against the wall. Hard.

"What's the meaning of this!"

The hit was so strong it rattled his teeth. Directing his eyes to the face of his friend, he gulped at the enraged look he was giving him. He directed his eyes back again to his damaged wrist. The cuts looked uglier than before, exhibited in the open like an expensive piece of art in a museum.

"It's not what you think." he managed to gasp out, albeit weakly.

Sasuke never had a look like that directed in his way. The Uzumaki looked ready to cut his head off.

"I-I can explain-"

"There's nothing to fucking explain!"

As if to emphasize his point, Naruto grabbed the Uchiha's wrist with both hands and passed a thumb over the scars. Sasuke let out another gasp.

"Are you shitting me?! Just what the hell are these?" Sasuke flinched when Naruto pressed some more on his cuts.

"I-I don't get it Sasuke. Why would you do this? Why would you do this to yourself," Naruto was no longer yelling. His voice sounded so pained, so broken, it weighted down on Sasuke and made him feel more guilty than ever. His eyes looked so sad, full of sorrow that Sasuke found it hard to keep looking at his face.

Naruto let go of Sasuke's wrist and backed away. He ruffled his hair frantically and sighed in exasperation. He started pacing, looking ready to pull his hair out strand by strand to release some of his frustration.

Sasuke swallowed his tears. This was what he feared the most.

"Naruto…" he tried calling to his friend who was giving him his back.

He hesitated a second, but then he made a step forward and slowly raised his arms and wrapped them around the blond's torso from behind. "You got it wrong, I swear you got it all wrong. Please, just let me explain." he tightened his hold around his friend, clinging to him and not letting go.

The silence between them stretched for too long, intercepted only by the car horns and city noises. Sasuke was more than afraid Naruto wouldn't want to listen to him. But that couldn't be compared to the terror he felt at the idea of losing his friend because of this stupid incident.

His worries were rest assured though when the Uzumaki finally turned back to him, his eyes deeply narrowed with a crisped look.

He looked about to cry.

"Let's just get away from here, and I swear I will tell you everything." Sasuke said with hopeful pleading eyes.

Naruto stood another minute scanning his friend, but he finally nodded anyway.

He sighed. "Fine. I really don't know what kind of fucked up shit made you damage your wrist like that, but it better be something serious Uchiha."

Sasuke nodded his head. He looked confident and determined.

"I promise I will tell you everything you need to know."

* * *

 ** _TBC_**

* * *

 **Animallover66666:** aww Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! I really hope this chapter didn't disappoint. We all can't wait to see Kaname getting what's coming to him ;)

 **pooja:** Honestly what you wrote made me extremely happy. Huge thank yous for reading and reviewing. I really hope I'll keep seeing you around since your reviews always manage to brighten my days.

 **Guest:** Okay I admit, you're honestly one of the reasons I updated this chapter today and not the day after tomorrow or even after that. Your review pushed me to start editing this chapter. Really thank you for that. Here's the scary part. People like Kaname do actually exist. I knew a Kaname in real life, and now he's rotting in prison. Good riddance. Thanks again for your support. Really hope this chapter wasn't disappointing.


	6. Un destin incontournable

**A/N:** Oh man, I swear the struggle was real with this chapter.

Honestly, the only way I could describe this chapter is _intense._ I both loved and hated writing it, but I can confidently say that it is my very favorite thing from all the stuff I've written so far in my life.

 **Warning:** Please _please_ don't read this if you feel depressed or just generally in a very bad mood. I promise you, your mood won't get better.

* * *

VI. Un destin incontournable

* * *

 _Hello, hello  
Anybody out there? Cause I don't hear a sound_  
 _Alone, alone_  
 _I don't really know where the world is but I miss it now_

 ** _Jasen Walker_ _~Echo_**

* * *

"You're… you're lying."

Sasuke gulped and shook his head. He bit his lip, his eyes never leaving the far too deranged ones of his friend.

This was fucking hard, but he had to do it anyway. He needed to do it.

His eyes hardened as he kept talking. "Believe it or not, that's what had been going on for the past few months. I didn't cut myself-I could never cut myself. The asshole was responsible for i-" In reflex, he brought his arms up to his face as a shield when Naruto flipped furiously the coffee table.

Naruto did not stop at that. He sent everything and anything unfortunate enough to be in his way crashing to the ground. He swore loudly, and when none of these seemed to have any effect on his swelling frustration, he clutched his hand into a fist and punched the wall. Once, twice, thrice.

Blood seeped from his damaged knuckles, tracing a trail as it descended down the wall.

Sasuke's eyes looked about to pop out of their sockets. His face paled, his heart pounding wildly in his chest.

Things should've never come to this.

Before Naruto could punch the wall a fourth time, Sasuke jumped in and blocked the fist with his hand. He winced as pain shot through his arm. With shaking lips he said, "Naruto, stop. Please, please just stop."

Naruto panted harshly, his eyes deeply furrowed. Furry swirled in their depths.

He retrieved his arm, only to grab the Uchiha harshly by the collar. He brought Sasuke's face closer to his. "Why did you not tell me sooner? Are you fucking out of your mind? How could you keep this to yourself! This is fucking SERIOUS!"

Blood stained Sasuke's shirt from the bloodied knuckles of Naruto. He was finding it hard to breathe with the tight grip around his collar.

Of course he knew this was a serious matter that shouldn't be taken lightly. But he just didn't know how to deal with his situation. He didn't know whom he should reach to, what to do. His Mother was always in danger and he didn't want to burden his friends with his worries-

No, these were just petty excuses.

Sasuke Uchiha simply did not want for anyone to know

He thought that he could deal with this on his own. That he didn't need help.

Or so he made himself believe.

But Naruto was taking none of his shit.

He swiftly released his hold around the Uchiha and made it to the door.

Sasuke felt panic rising in his chest. "Wait Naruto where are you going?"

The Uzumaki ignored him and kept walking. "I'm gonna fucking kill him." he mumbled under his breath.

Before he could reach for the door handle, Sasuke hurdled himself between his friend and the door, blocking his way.

"Just wait. Let us talk this through-"

"Move Sasuke."

"I'm sure we'll find the perfect solution to this mess-"

"I said Move!"

Sasuke did not bulge from his place, his hand locked firmly around the door handle. He kept his eyes up, not shying away from the blue orbs that sent off killing vibes.

Naruto was not thinking straight. Letting him go would be a rash and dangerous move.

They kept at it in a dreadful silence, one watching the other and no one was backing off.

But then Naruto made a face and went down to his knees. He fisted painfully his hair. His lips bickered, and his face was slowly turning red as if he were strangled.

Sasuke would choose Naruto's anger anytime over his tears.

His heart squeezed tightly in his chest when tears run down his friend's whiskered cheeks. No, things should've never come to this.

He slowly got down to his knees and placed a hand on Naruto's bright hair. "Naruto…"

The Uzumaki didn't answer him. He didn't talk, instead he acted.

He brought his two arms around Sasuke and squeezed him tightly to his chest. He embraced him, burying his face into Sasuke's shoulder. He let his tears free.

"I'm so sorry-" there was a sob, "I'm so sorry Sasuke. It's just, I don't want to lose you Sasuke, please don't do this to us. We love you, I love you. I don't want to lose you, please…"

There were painful jabs in Sasuke's chest, and before he knew it, his own tears made it to the surface and slipped down his cheeks.

He gritted his teeth.

 _Fuck you Kaname._

He kept cursing the man over and over in his head like a prayer, dreading the day he met him for the first time. The day he set a foot into their lives.

He hugged Naruto back, rubbing his back soothingly, all the while seething at his tormentor.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

After their emotional episode, things cooled down between the two teenagers.

Naruto had taken a cold shower to get his anger in check. Sasuke saw an opportunity in it and took a short nap.

They were currently seated in the living room, facing each other, addressing the problem and trying to find the right way to get to the solution.

From the look of it, Sasuke was pretty sure that Naruto will get the police involved.

A pang of guilt pinched his heart at the sight of Naruto's bandaged hand.

Sensing Sasuke's distress, Naruto slowly passed a hand over his wounded hand. "Don't worry yourself. It's nothing serious."

A small smile showed on the Uzumaki's face, though it felt forced as his eyes were down in sadness.

Suddenly, as his guilt could no longer be contained, Sasuke got this huge urge to apologize.

"I'm sor-"

"Don't." Naruto cut him off, "Don't apologize. Just don't,"

Naruto's gaze wasn't a hard one, but it wasn't gentle either.

Sasuke clamped his mouth shut. He felt like he just had been scolded by an adult. He felt small, tiny in his world. Shame surged through him, scorching his insides and twisting his guts in painful waves.

He should've asked for help. There was nothing wrong in seeking for help. His life was involved. His Mother's life was involved. _Still_ involved.

But he hadn't. And that was his greatest regret.

He lowered his head, but his ears stayed attentive as Naruto carried on talking. "I know someone who is a police officer that could help us. We shouldn't fuck this up. We should do it right and we should do it right about now. You hear me Sasuke?"

Sasuke merely nodded his head. He couldn't bring himself to look his friend in the eye.

Then suddenly he remembered something and he looked up. "Mom. She'll leave today, alone. To my grandma's. For a week."

Yes that's it. They'll get Kaname arrested this evening. When his mother will be safe, far away from the house where danger won't reach her.

He still miraculously hadn't deleted the message he got the night of his first assault. And his cuts could be used against Kaname to send him to jail.

"Are you sure Sasuke?" Naruto was saying as he got to his feet. He widened his eyes for a fraction, his mind obviously processing this precious information.

Sasude nodded again, looking confident.

They looked at each other for some time, then they both shared a curt nod.

The obstacle that was in their way will no longer be.

This night, Sasuke's nightmare will finally be over.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Setting his foot outside Naruto's house, Sasuke adjusted his clothes and started walking to the street.

A hand around his good wrist made him halt his movements.

He blinked in surprise then turned around to see Naruto with a troubled face looking intently at him. "Can't we just, do it another way? This is too risky."

Sasuke frowned. He shook his head. "This is the only way. What if he escaped at the very last minute. That wouldn't be good. I should be there when the police reaches my house."

Naruto understood this. He understood all of this. Yet, the mere thought of letting Sasuke go near the fucker made him feel extremely worried. It was too dangerous, but it was simply the only way.

Sasuke put his hand on the one gripping his wrist. "Let go Naruto." he said softly, lowly. He understood Naruto's distress, but his friend should place some of his trust in him.

The plan wasn't that complicated, and he was sure he'll be fine by the end of it.

For a time, Sasuke thought the Uzumaki would never let go, then slowly, grudgingly, Naruto released his wrist and made two steps back.

His hair covered his eyes as he lowered his head. He didn't want to let go.

Sasuke gave another appreciative look at Naruto, as if graving the memory in his mind. As he made some few steps forward, he was once again stopped in his tracks.

What happened next took less than a minute.

In a blur of gold and blue, Sasuke felt lips pressed to his. The gesture was simple and short, yet intimate. It was a way for Naruto to pass some of his raging feelings to the Uchiha.

 _Please be safe. Please come back. I love you._

Sasuke responded with the same by kissing back.

 _I love you too._

It was nothing over the top.

It was just a promise of more at his return, and Sasuke would do anything to make it back.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke watched from afar as his mother packed her luggage in her car. Kaname was helping her.

They stood beside the car, exchanging words before Kaname returned inside the house.

Sasuke moved forward. He turned his face into its usual stoic one then went to greet his mother.

A smile bloomed on Mikoto's face at the sight of her son. "Sasuke, where have you been? I thought I wouldn't see you before I leave." she moved forward and gave her son a warm hug.

Her smile slowly fell when she inspected his face closely. "Is there something wrong Sasuke?" she sounded worried.

Sasuke shook his head. With great efforts he managed to pull a smile. "No, I just had a fight with Naruto. But there's really nothing to worry about." that wasn't totally a lie.

Mikoto took another minute scanning her son. Glancing around her, she grabbed Sasuke by the hand and moved him closer to her. This time she was whispering, as if worried someone other than him will hear. "Listen Sasuke and listen carefully. If anything happenes, please call me." she squeezed his hand, "If your grandma wasn't sick and didn't need my help, I wouldn't leave you here by yourself with him. I know you don't like him, but I also recently had been having my doubts." Sasuke widened his eyes, "I'm being serious son. Just do it, and I swear I'll be right on my way back to you. Promise me."

Sasuke was having a hard time believing what was happening. His Mother was suspecting something wasn't right about the man. Only she didn't know what that something was, and Sasuke did.

He wanted to tell her, but he held his tongue.

"Promise me Sasuke, please." Mikoto breathed out then brought both her arms around her son. She hugged him tightly, clinging to him. Sasuke hugged her back just as tight. She smelled like home, which did manage to put Sasuke's racing heart at ease for a while.

As he opened an eye, his gaze landed directly on Kaname standing by the front doors. From afar he looked like he was smiling at them.

But Sasuke knew better.

* * *

XxX

* * *

With very cautious steps, Sasuke moved forward through the hall.

Mikoto had just left, leaving him and Kaname behind alone. His plan was easy. All he had to do was send the signal from his phone to Naruto once the asshole will make a move on him.

Naruto will come barging in with the police. They'll arrest Kaname, and then things will turn back to the way they used to be. He'll get his peace, and he'll no longer have to watch his back in his own house.

Yes, that simple idea comforted Sasuke and motivated him to lunge forward.

As he got to the kitchen, he found it empty. Feeling thirsty, he reached for the water bottle on the table and took a mouthful. Then another until he drank half the bottle. He was already aware of the fact that it was only a matter of time before Kaname will attack him, so he wasn't completely surprised when he felt hands running over his body. Sasuke suppressed the urge to fight back.

But something wasn't right. Kaname wasn't aggressive in his gestures.

If nothing he was-he was… Sasuke was falling. He was falling to the ground. His vision swirled dangerously as nausea hit him hard. He doubled over and emptied his stomach on the kitchen floor.

 _What happened, what is happening?_

The water. Something was wrong with the water.

Another wave of nausea hit him, and he finished retching the last of the food in his stomach.

But even after that, the nausea never seized its assault on him. Whatever he drank, whatever fucked up shit he drank, it was weakening his movements, and that wasn't something that will benefit him later on.

With very shaky hands, Sasuke reached for his phone in his pocket. He should do it now, before he loses consciousness, before it's too late, before…

The phone slipped from his hold, and before Sasuke could retrieve it, a hand shot from his side and grabbed it.

With great efforts, he directed his attention up to the source of his misery. Kaname wasn't smirking, he wasn't laughing, he was merely keeping a very serious face.

Much to Sasuke's dismay, he sent the phone crashing to the ground, then stepped on it. He kept stomping on it, not stopping until he was sure that the phone wouldn't represent a danger to him.

Sasuke couldn't help the sob tearing through his chest.

He just watched his only hope crashing before him.

He cursed loudly with hot tears staining his cheeks.

Then his arms could no longer hold his weight, and he slumped down to the floor, darkness closing over him.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Sasuke could still feel.

For instance, he could feel the soft bed cushions under him as he moved his body. His vision was still blurry, and an intense headache surged from the back of his skull, making him gasp in pain.

As he made to sit up, a shadow looming by the door caught his eye. Sasuke was conscious enough to know his surroundings, but the simple act of moving his leg to dangle it by the bedside was proving to be such a hard challenge. His limbs felt so heavy as if they weighted ten times more.

He grunted and groaned as he tried to move his legs. Not until his feet touched the floor that the shadow finally moved towards him.

Sasuke was trying not to panic. He was in a fucking crucial situation and he didn't have to fuck it even more. Hopefully the lack of reply from his part will alarm Naruto.

Yes hopefully, since hope seemed the only thing that he wasn't willing to give up on just yet.

He held his tongue from cursing at Kaname when the latter crouched beside the bed, facing him. Sasuke's eyes quickly traveled to the bed lamp on his nightstand then back again to Kaname's face.

He narrowed his eyes. "Why are you doing this?"

The Uchiha fisted his hands by his sides when Kaname howled in laughter.

"What kind of question is that?"

Sasuke resisted the urge to back away when Kaname's mouth came up to his ear. He whispered, "Why? you're asking. Because I love it. Call me sick, call me fucked up, call me whatever the hell you want to call me, but that won't stop me from doing what I love. Believe me Sasuke, you're not the first, and you most definitely won't be the last."

Kaname's words disturbed Sasuke greatly he started trembling.

But Sasuke saw his chance in this, and before Kaname could make a single move, he ignored the pain stabbing at his arm and he grabbed the bed lamp and smashed it hard against Kaname's head.

The horrendous painful cries of the man cut sharply through the silence. He kept screaming while clutching tightly his head, his body hitting hard the floor boards.

Blood covered half of his face. It got in his eyes, his mouth and teeth. Sasuke couldn't help but compare him to the monsters that used to scare him as a child.

He weakly dragged his limbs over the suffering man and started making his way for the door. His speed was too slow for his likings. But he needed to make it, because he knew if he was caught by the monster this time, he won't survive.

A sharp crippling pain in his ankle made him topple to the floor. Sasuke's eyes widened when he gazed down at his foot. A small knife was lodged in his ankle. Angry red was gushing out from the seemingly deep wound.

"Fuck!" he swore loudly as he tried but failed to get the knife out of his flesh. If this happened in a regular situation, he was sure he would've already passed out.

But this was no regular situation. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins, and the fear of dying clouded over his mind.

Giving up all together, he instead reached for the wall to lean on it and get himself up on his good leg. The shit he drank was still weakening his movements.

As he hopped on his intact foot, a sense of déjà-vu hit him as a hand clutched his ankle tightly, making him lose his balance and then right after fall harshly to the floor.

Sasuke clamped his eyes shut at the intense pain that shook his body. He grunted as he crawled on the floor, the door looking so close, yet too far.

A deep cry tore through his chest when Kaname stomped brutally on his hand. The bastard used too much force that Sasuke was convinced he broke a finger or two.

Then a kick was sent to his stomach, then another came, and another followed making him cough bright red frothy blood.

Kaname abruptly stopped at the sight of blood. He crouched down beside Sasuke, grabbed a hidden knife from his pants and took a grip of the teenager by the hair.

Sasuke kept coughing blood. His lungs felt full, making it hard for him to breathe.

But then, before Kaname could think of what to do next with the knife, loud sirens echoed outside, getting nearer by the second.

Kaname widened his eyes while Sasuke smiled weakly.

He was so glad he didn't lose hope.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Loud boisterous banging came from the front doors. Kaname, still holding the knife close to Sasuke's throat, holed himself up. He paced the room, his eyes wild.

Sasuke spat blood and made to sit up. His whole body hurt like hell, especially his chest, but even in his situation he couldn't help the smug look on his face at seeing the asshole getting nervous and restless, maybe even scared.

His victory was short lived though when Kaname landed another kick to his stomach, making the teenager almost choke on his blood.

Seeing that it won't be long before the police will come up to him, Kaname decided instead to go down to them.

But of course, he wouldn't leave the bait behind.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

The phone was ready to snap at the tight grip of the hand holding it.

Naruto could no longer keep his cool.

He had a feeling from the very beginning that this was gonna happen. He had a feeling this was gonna fucking happen.

He gritted his teeth in self loathing. Fuck, if only he hadn't let Sasuke go this morning.

He stood behind as he watched the police officers try to break through the front doors. They were firmly shut from inside.

A gentle hand on his arm made him slightly loosen his grip on his phone.

Sakura looked with intense concern in her eyes at her friend. So she was right all along. Something was indeed going on between Sasuke and his stepfather.

They all sighed deeply in relief when the doors were finally opened.

"Naruto wait!"

Ignoring the shouts, Naruto hastily ran past Sakura and the police officers to inside. Walking through the all too familiar hall, he was just about to run up the stairs, when something caught his eye.

Blood. A lot of it trailed down the stairs, tracing a pattern that led directly to the living room.

Fear gripped Naruto's heart to the point he started shaking. As he willed his legs to move forward, he was shaken to the core at the sight that greeted him.

He blinked and blinked, but his vision couldn't clear away the nightmare that was facing him.

A bloody faced Kaname moved the knife closer still, ignoring the pained grunts of the teenager that was hardly keeping his body upright on one leg.

"Move and I'll cut his throat."

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"Naruto-" Sasuke whispered weakly, his voice hoarse. He was closing one eye in pain at the tight grip Kaname had around his hair. The knife felt cold on his skin, a contrast to the hot red fluid running through his veins.

He lost blood. Too much blood. He was finding it extremely hard to stay conscious with the throbbing pain all over his limbs.

Seeing Naruto both comforted and worried him.

Naruto on his part was having an intense debate in his head. He lifted his hands up as if in surrender. "wooow, don't do anything stupid Kaname. Easy now, let us have a civilized discussion."

"Cut the crap now brat."

Naruto bit his lip from cussing. Before he could think of what to say next, two police officers with their unholstered guns stepped inside the living room.

"Don't fucking move or I swear I'll kill him." Kaname threatened again, but this time he pressed the knife harder to Sasuke's throat, making the teenager breathe sharply at the burning sensations from having his flesh cut.

The two policemen made some few steps back, their guns still aimed at Kaname's head. They shared strained looks as they slowly lowered their guns.

One of them -Kakashi was his name- started talking, "We'll give you anything you want, just let go of the kid. He has nothing to do with this."

"Nothing to do with this! Are you shitting me!? I told him not to tell anyone!" Kaname yelled, the pressure on Sasuke's throat increasing by the second.

Sasuke could no longer hold back his tears. He was going to die. He was going to die by a fucking madman.

With pleading helpless eyes, he looked at Naruto. He mouthed, _'Naruto, please forgive me.'_

In that moment, in that very moment, Uzumaki Naruto knew it was too late.

The next ten seconds passed in a blur.

But so many things happened in those ten seconds.

There were shootings, screaming, yelling, but most importantly, there was death.

Because the moment Sasuke let out his last words, the sharp knife didn't cut his throat.

It plunged itself deeply into his heart.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"SASUKE!"

The distraught Uzumaki threw his weight to the ground beside his friend's body. Sasuke's eyes were wide open, glued to the ceiling. He wanted to breathe, he needed to fucking breathe, but his body wouldn't obey him.

He convulsed harshly when more blood spurted out of his mouth.

"Sasuke, don't worry I'm here. It's gonna be okay. You're fine Sasuke, you're fine."

A loud scream echoed through the house hall before Sakura joined ungracefully Naruto's side. She sobbed loudly, bringing her sleeve to wipe her nose before she gripped Sasuke's hand tightly in hers.

"Sa-Sa-Sasuke," her intense sobs hindered her ability to talk.

She got the call from Naruto and came as soon as she could. But she could've never imagined that things would be this serious, to the point it would be a matter of life and death.

She barely glanced at the other body sprawled on the floor some centimeters from her.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

Kaname had a blank look in his eyes. The bullet embedded in his forehead finished his life in mere seconds.

Kakashi didn't hesitate when he shot him. His only regret was that he hadn't done it sooner, before things got ugly. Before the fucker could stab the kid in the heart.

He was shoved harshly to the side when Naruto, more furious than he had ever been in his whole life, got down over Kaname's lifeless body, and kept desperately punching it in the face.

"ASSHOLE, FUCKER, MURDERER!" he kept yelling over and over with each landing punch. He was so damn angry that he died in such a merciful way. Fuck, he deserved to suffer.

Kakashi, bewildered, grasped the rampaging teenager by the arms and jerked him upright. This was insanity. The man was already dead. "Stop."

As his hands were bound behind him, Naruto instead used his legs and kept kicking the lifeless body.

"I said stop!" Kakashi propelled him away from the body, but Naruto was still thrashing in his grasp. Just before Kakashi was about to knock him down, a powerful voice stopped him in his tracks.

"NARUTO! Stop being fucking stupid. Sasuke needs us!"

Naruto all at once stopped moving. With very pained eyes, he looked down at Sakura, at how she was clutching tightly their dying friend's hand.

He landed on his knees right beside her again, and put his hand on top of theirs, then shifted his eyes to Sasuke's almost empty ones.

"Sasuke, hang it there pal. I swear the medics are on their way. It won't be long before they'll get here."

Sasuke kept blinking, almost numb to his surroundings. His mouth turned downright, and then with no warning whatsoever, he started crying, the sound so raw, so weak yet powerful it moved Naruto's own tears.

"I-I don't want-I don't want to-to die," he mumbled, the words coming out so softly, and yet they managed to shatter Naruto's heart ruthlessly.

"I don't want to die, Naruto, Sakura p-please I don't want to die," he kept repeating over and over while his friends could only stay by his side and weep silently.

* * *

 **/./Impulse/./**

* * *

"Move! Move! Move!"

"Doctor Tsunade, we have a crucial case here…"

 **…**

Everything was so blurry, so damn blurry. Words no longer made any sense to him, and his vision would only capture the faintest of details-

 **…**

"Shizune HURRY!"

 _Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep…_

"My God doctor Tsunade what shall I do? His heart rate is…"

 **…**

So loud. Can't they be silent for a minute, he just wanted to sleep in peace-

 **…**

"DOCTOR TSUNADE WE'RE LOSING HIM!"

 _Bip, bip, bip, bip, bip, bip, bip, bip, bip…_

"I KNOW! SHIZUNE HELP ME HERE,"

 **…**

Oh, he forgot to wish Sakura, Naruto and his mother good night. He'll just have to apologize to them when he wakes up up tomorro-

 **…**

 _Bip, bip, bip, bip, Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee…_

 **…**

 _"We-we…We lost him."_

* * *

 ** _The End_**

* * *

 **Animallover66666:** Well since this is the very last chapter, I just wanted to thank you for sticking around with me from the very first one. Really thank you so much for that. Your words were always encouraging. I apologize if this last chapter upset you. Next time I'll definitely try for a happier ending.


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